


Cherries & Honey

by luna beatrice (legendarytozier)



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Blaise is an idiot, Draco gets with everyone, Explicit Sexual Content, Fluff and Smut, Harry Potter Epilogue What Epilogue | EWE, Love Potion/Spell, Mating Rituals, Mildly Dubious Consent, Multi, Post-Battle of Hogwarts, Sad Draco Malfoy, Slutty Slytherins, Smut, Suicidal Thoughts
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-02
Updated: 2020-12-18
Packaged: 2021-03-07 17:08:19
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 39,852
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26781154
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/legendarytozier/pseuds/luna%20beatrice
Summary: Draco has become a shell of himself. He's numb, he's closed off, and he's desperate to simply finish his 8th year at Hogwarts completely uneventfully.His friends have a very different idea. Draco just needs a little push to become himself again. One that involves a secret party, an out of control lust potion, and Draco's life being thrown into sheer chaos.
Relationships: Daphne Greengrass/Draco Malfoy, Draco Malfoy/Ginny Weasley, Draco Malfoy/Pansy Parkinson, Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy, Luna Lovegood/Draco Malfoy
Comments: 49
Kudos: 91





	1. Numb

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 𝑵𝒖𝒎𝒃 - 𝑬𝒍𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒃𝒓𝒐𝒐𝒌  
> Oh, reachin' in the dark  
> Nothing's there to touch  
> I wish I could love

Draco felt incredibly, and inexplicably, numb.

The sense of slightly impending doom always looming over his shoulder had made him into a shell of a man, and when it left, Draco didn’t have much to grab onto anymore. He wandered through his day to day life a hollow ghost, not speaking to anymore, not engaging anyone anymore. He did what he had to, and that was it. He wasn’t about to pretend that his situation was good, great even, nor was he going to pretend that he was good, great even.

The key to not letting the horrors of his life not overwhelm was to not let his current predicament overwhelm him. And that meant complete and utter detachment from everyone and everything. Draco went to class, went Quidditch practice, went to the library to study, went to the Great Hall for meals, and went to bed. That was it. Nothing more was to be done, if he wanted to keep his sanity in check. And that was the most important task of all.

So Draco remained numb.

After the war ended, Draco was immediately put on trial. He was one of the first, which he attributed to being underage for most of it, and the Wizengamot hoping that without time to mull it over, Draco would panic and give every detail to them. And panic he had. He was remorseful of his actions and tried very hard to pinpoint the time in his life when everything went haywire and he was too far in to be able to truly back out. He couldn’t figure it out. He had always been harbouring an incredibly dark soul, but it seemed that when the Dark Lord had infiltrated himself into the Malfoy home and made Draco his personal assistant, Draco had realized that maybe he wasn’t so dark after all.

Maybe he had just been told he was.

So imagine his surprise when Harry Potter and Hermione Granger and Luna Lovegood had stepped forward to testify for him at his trial. Yes, _for_ him. They had gone on and on about how he had saved their lives by lying to his aunt, how he had spared so much time for them that they had been able to escape, how Draco had barely fought back when Harry had used a spell to capture his wand, merely nodded in a way that seemed to suggest, “good luck”.

It had. Draco had wished them every ounce of luck.

Luna talked about how he had never once raised his voice or touched her when she was trapped in the Malfoy Manor, and had actually taken to bringing her food and water, and even delivering a blanket when she expressed how cold it was in there at night. She knew he couldn’t let her out without completely dooming him and his parents, and he knew it too, so he instead chose to make sure she was as comfortable as possible before they found a use for her.

Hermione’s testimony hurt the worst. He could hear her screams in his mind when things were too quiet, see her writhing body on the floor of his drawing room. He had cried when it happened, not even caring that Bellatrix or his father might see and accuse him of being weak. No, he cried and stared directly into her eyes and did exactly the kind of thing that would end with him being beaten within an inch of his life.

He cast a spell.

Focusing in his teachings from 6th year, he remembered a spell that had eased the pain of the sufferer. It was supposed to be used during pregnancy but had extended out to other uses when they realized how effective it was. Draco had practiced it in his room until he had been able to do it wordlessly, and wandlessly. He had imagined having to use it on his parents one day, when they were tortured by the Dark Lord for Draco’s inevitable fuck up, or perhaps even on himself when he feared that he might be at the end, dying. It paid off, all that practicing, but not in the way he expected. He focused his eyes on hers and whispered the words in his mind, and watched as her pupils dilated dramatically, and the tensions in her back eased. She continued to scream, perhaps for the show or perhaps because it still hurt, but Draco felt he did as much as he could. Even if it cost him his life.

She deserved to live, and more.

Hermione had, in fact, lived, but so had Draco. And so now here she was, relaying the events, trying to explain to the Wizengamot what he had done without even really knowing it herself. They had eventually asked Draco what he had done, and he explained.

He was found not guilty on almost every charge.

So instead of prison time in Azkaban, Draco was forced to return to Hogwarts for an 8th year, to make up for the screwed up 7th year he’d had. He was to be on perfect behaviour, and not even consider lifting his wand to another. He was also forced to endure very painful dark magic rituals to remove the mark on his arm, _for science_ , if anyone asked, and so far, nothing had worked. He felt maybe that they didn’t believe anything would work, but rather were using this as an opportunity to be tortured for his crimes.

Oh, if only they knew the pain the Dark Lord had put him through for merely breathing.

Anyone who was in 7th year was asked to come back, except Harry and Ron, who had been offered a spot in Auror training for being war heroes. Hermione had apparently been offered a place too, but declined, wanting to actually write her N.E.W.T.S and prove that she was brilliant without having her opportunities just handed to her because she had saved the world. As if anyone could ever question her incredible mind. 

“Hey mate, you still on for a quick run before the Quidditch match tomorrow evening?” Theo asked him softly. Currently, they were sitting in the Great Hall for lunch, Draco reading a text on the use of certain plants to create healing potions that worked even better than Essence of Dittany. Draco nodded once, not lifting his eyes from his book.

The only people Draco deigned to even waste time speaking with were Theo Nott, Blaise Zabini and Pansy Parkinson, who, unfortunately, came as a package deal with Daphne Greengrass. And even then, their friendship had drifted into more of a gathering of convenience. Draco did not want to make new friends, so he deigned to spend time with his old ones, but they still barely spoke and only dragged him along for fear that he might do something dramatic.

Like end his life.

Draco was content to tag along, but he had made it distressingly clear over the summer that he was going to be nothing more than a shadow that followed the others around. He had no interesting input to give and preferred to watch silently from the sidelines. It made him feel safe.

Well, as safe as an ex Death Eater could feel when the never-ending darkness threatened to still consume his very being.

“And you’ll still come help me with the barrels of firewhiskey for the party tonight, right?” Pansy asked, fluttering her eyelashes and questioning in a tone that was so sickly sweet that Draco thought he might be ill. 

He finally lifted his eyes from the book. “Yes, Pansy,” he drawled, barely mustering of the effort to give her a withering glance, but she didn’t seem to care. She smiled softly, and turned back to her conversation with Daphne, which seemed to entail something about cards and fingernail colours for the evening. Draco was careful to keep his eye roll inside, and not show any outward signs of disdain. 

Pansy and Draco had hooked up, many times, and come very close to making it official back in 5th year, but as soon as Draco became too consumed with the Dark Lord and trying desperately to not fail so as not to let his family die, he called everything off. He could barely remember to shower and brush his hair, let alone think about dating girls and having _fun_. Especially Pansy, someone he wasn’t even sure he liked. That had simply been put on the back burner.

That wasn’t to say Draco hadn’t hooked up with people since then. Because he had. Many. A frighteningly large number. Witches _and_ muggles. Women _and_ men, he didn’t even care at this point. Never more than once. Never in his home. Hotels, apartments, the bathroom in a dimly lit muggle club. It was obscene. But it felt like the only thing he could control. He could control who it was, where it was, when it was, and he could dominate power over that person like it was second nature. But it was never romantic, and Draco didn’t offer comfort beyond a simple “are you alright, can you stand?” and perhaps offering to get them a cab.

No, Draco hadn’t had any issues hooking up. He’d had issues creating a relationship, feelings, love. He couldn’t even remember the last time he’d looked at someone and thought, _I want to be with them. I deserve to be with them._

Because honestly, the only person Draco deserved to be with was the devil himself. So, Draco remained numb.

Students began rising from their seats, and Draco closed the book before him with a sigh. He had Defense Against the Dark Arts this afternoon first, and then Herbology, then a free period. Normally he had Astronomy in the evenings, but tonight’s class had been called off due to overwhelming clouds and rain, so he no longer had an excuse to get out of Pansy’s party. He thought perhaps she had found a spell to create rain and get everyone out of Astronomy, but that was very advanced magic, and Pansy didn’t seem the type.

She was just lucky.

Theo walked alongside him, comfortable silence filling the space. Theo was the one who understood Draco the most and had never tried to push Draco too far. He let Draco trail behind the group often, and redirected conversation to something else when the others tried to make him participate in a task he wasn’t particularly excited for. Draco would be eternally grateful for Theo keeping him afloat this year, but he didn’t ever need to say it. Theo knew. 

Walking quietly into the bustling DADA classroom, Draco noticed the massive walkway that was elevated above the floor. He almost turned around and walked out, but Hermione had already spotted him and waved him over. The two had been paired up for the class, partners in attempting spells and often times the key demonstrators for the others. They were the only two who had faced Dark Arts spells countless times, and therefore, were the most versed in understanding the ways to counter them. The walkway suggested that they would have to do just that, and it was Draco’s least favourite days in this class. Something about being in the spotlight and being watched made him feel sick, even if that had been his sole goal for many of their early years. The students never really directly bothered him, those who wished him ill tended to just keep to themselves rather than outrightly attack him. The transcript of his trial was a public work, and he knew everyone had read it. If two thirds of the Golden Trio had stood up for him, then it was clear that the other students had no grounds to stand on to attack him. And Draco had completely turned himself around, becoming a recluse rather than his usual prat-like self, so students just ignored him. Pretended he wasn’t there. Exactly what he wanted.

It helped him stay numb.

Draco made his way over to Hermione and stood quietly beside her. She had made it some sort of personal mission to bring Draco out of his shell, and although she hadn’t succeeded in the last month, she never stepped down. She engaged him in conversation, asked him about books he was reading, even went so far as to ask how Quidditch was. Draco had to applaud her efforts; she was a determined little witch. He often humoured her, giving her smaller answers than the questions she asked, but he was never cruel. He just often didn’t have anything much to give.

“Hi! I know that you hate when we do the demonstration thing, but I think it’s good the other kids see. And you’re a good sparring partner,” she said, nudging him slightly with her shoulder. Draco gave a small smile, and rolled his eyes.

“I think they’re all just hoping you’ll knock me flat out cold one of these days. That would bring them immense joy,” he replied, pushing his bag against the wall off to the side, out of the way of stray wand fire. 

“No one actually wants you dead, Draco, don’t say that. Maybe perhaps they just wish to see you lose against me. You’re a really good partner, and you’re a hundred times more talented than anyone in here. They’re jealous,” she said, turning to look at him fully. Draco gave her a sideways glance but didn’t turn his body to face hers. They were too close, and that felt… too personal.

“Unfortunately, that is because I have utilized the spells we are trying to protect ourselves from many times. So, I am well aware of the counter to them. And if you think at least half of these students don’t wish I was in the grave right now, or even Azkaban, you’re fooling yourself,” he spoke softly to her. She frowned, opening her mouth to say more, but was cut off by their professor walking in and clapping his hands once loudly.

“Good afternoon students! Today we are going to be working with a nasty spell, so I hope you all had a good lunch,” Professor Ludwig said, turning in the centre of the walkway to address the room. He was an attractive man, younger, from America. He remained neutral on the topic of discussing dark versus light magic and utilized an unbiased teaching method. He never made Draco feel like an outsider because of what he’d done. Headmistress McGonagall had informed him of Draco’s past… affiliations, and instead of looking at him like a traitor, he had made sure to use Draco’s firsthand knowledge of Dark Arts and made him demonstrate spells alongside him, asking him to explain what each felt like or how best to execute them. Ludwig was well aware of how each spell was used and had obviously read much on the subjects, but to have someone in the room who had exact knowledge of it clearly excited him. “Today we will be discussing a spell that a man in this very school created himself many years ago, and is starting to spread its way through public knowledge. I want you all to be aware of it, and especially how to reverse it. Draco, Hermione, if you would.” The professor waved his hand over the stage, and Draco sighed. No shock there.

The two shucked off their outer robes, and Draco felt very exposed in his stark white shirt and black slacks He had forgone a tie today, and his neck fe  
lt much too open now. One quick swish and flick from a pissed off student and he’d be bleeding out from his neck in front of his peers.

Once on the stage, the two stood on either side of the walkway. Draco reluctantly pulled his wand out of his pocket, and a soft murmur flowed through the crowd. It did every time he pulled it out; the Elder Wand. The most powerful wand in the world.

After the war, Harry had held onto the thing, keeping it tucked away somewhere hidden. After the trial, when Draco was allowed his wand back, Harry had come forth to him. Draco was shocked to see Harry approach him directly, but Harry didn’t seem to have any malice in his eyes. He rather nodded once, and pulled the wand out.

“I…I thought it had responded to me after I disarmed you in the Manor. But apparently, I needed to have disarmed you with this exact wand, rather than your normal one. So… your old wand responds to me. It won’t work for you. But this one will. It’s yours,” Harry said, handing the wand to Draco. Draco had just stood there wide eyed and panicked, unsure of how to respond. Harry had smiled at him then, clapped him once on the shoulder, and left. Harry knew Draco didn’t have much in response to say to such an intense gift, and he didn’t expect Draco to have anything to say at all. 

Draco spent all summer trying desperately to get a new wand, going to every wand shop in the world. Every time one would somewhat sing to him, the Elder Wand would warm in his back pocket, and the new wand would split and crumble and become completely unusable. 

He had tried to snap it, burn it, crush it, even used his own mother’s wand to try and destroy the damn thing. Nothing worked. The wand was not meant to die, since it was born of death itself, and therefore, until someone disarmed him and then killed him, the wand was his.

It was incredibly unsettling. 

Draco and Hermione stared at one another, awaiting further instruction. He knew she didn’t care about the wand, feeling that Draco had changed, and was absolutely worthy of the wand. She thought Dumbledore would have wanted him to have it, but Draco very much thought otherwise.

The old man was likely rolling in his grave right now.

“Alright, so, today the spell we shall be discussing is called Sectumsempra,” Ludwig said, and Draco visibly paled. He knew that spell. Snape had created it, and Harry had stumbled upon it in an old potions’ textbook. Not knowing the effects, Harry had fired it at him in a sixth-floor bathroom, and Draco suppressed a shudder to remember the effects. The pain had been immense, and he could still see his white shirt becoming bright red in quick succession. The lacerations had been fatal, and if Snape himself hadn’t shown up to reverse the effects, Draco would have died right then and there.

Maybe that wouldn’t have been so bad.

Hermione also knew of the spell, and also knew Harry had utilized it on him. She too, looked shaken up by the fact that their professor had brought it up. Of course, she knew word had gotten around that something had happened to Draco in the boy’s bathroom in sixth year with Harry, and as the gossip mill ran about, and the spell came to light after being used by Snape in battle, and someone had seen Draco shirtless somewhere along the lines, everyone put the facts together. Harry had discovered the spell and used it against Draco years ago. Which was why he looked so awful standing there to discuss the effects of such a spell. It was dark, a curse that would not heal on its own, and required a very intense ritualistic-like spell to revere the effects. And it hurt like a fucking bitch. After being hit with it, Draco had studied the spell with an intensity, begging Snape to educate him. If he was going to be hit with spells like that, he wanted to know what they were and how to reverse them.

As Ludwig explained the spell, how it worked, and its exact movements, Draco’s mind blanked. He stopped feeling anything at all, and just remembered how bad it had felt. How he had thought maybe, just maybe, he was dying. Finally.

“Now, Mr. Malfoy, if you’d deign to show us how it is done,” Ludwig said, and gestured to Hermione. “Aim for her shins and ankles, and I will teach the others how to reverse the effects while you do so. I am told you are well aware of this spell and how it works”.

“Professor, I don’t think that-“ Hermione tried, but Ludwig held a hand up to her. She looked panicked, like she didn’t know how to stop the whole scenario. It wasn’t panic for being cursed, no, that wasn’t even a thought anymore. It was panic at the fact that Draco would have to hurt her, and it would likely send him into a dark spiral that she had worked so hard to try and pull him from. It would reverse all the hard work he had done. Fear tried to filter through his veins, but Draco quickly Occluded his mind and made the panic subside. She would be fine. To the shins, she’d crumble, and it would hurt, but she would be fine. He could do this, he could do this, he could do this…

He could not do this.

Draco took a deep breath. Either he did this and survived and all was fine, or he died, and all was better. Either route was fine.

Draco was numb.

 _“Sectumsempra!”_ He cried out, waving his wand at his own abdomen. The student body gasped, and Draco quickly fell to his knees. The pain was instantaneous, and he quickly regretted ever coming back to the school. Gasping for air, Draco leaned forward on his hands and knees and grappled for his dropped wand. His face was wet with blood, and perhaps even tears, and his white shirt was once again soaked in red.

The intense déjà vu was unsettling to him.

He could barely register Ludwig’s gasp and Hermione’s screech, as she ran over to try and help him. She pressed her hands on his cheek, but the blood simply seeped through her fingers. It was a curse, and traditional methods would not work in this case.

“Hermione, my wand,” he gasped out, and she quickly stumbled to gather it from where it had fallen behind him. The location of the cuts was severe, and he had to act quickly if he wanted to live. Which frankly, he wasn’t sure he did.

“What do I do? What do I say? How do I fix it?” She cried, looking at Ludwig. He opened his mouth to tell her the cure, but Draco beat him to the punch.

 _“Vulnera Sanentur,”_ Draco whispered softly to himself, wand poised at his still bleeding stomach. The words were to be spoken in a melodic way, almost like a song. This was critical. _“Vulnera Sanetur,”_ he spoke again. The blood had pulled itself back into Draco’s body, off the mat and shirt he wore and into his own veins. The wounds were knitting, obviously going to leave more scars alongside his old ones. A painful reminder. _“Vulnera Sanetur,”_ he said for the last time, and the curse that accompanied the spell drifted out of his skin and into the air. Hermione, Ludwig, and the rest of the class watched silently and in shock, as Draco pulled himself up to his feet. He was a bit wobbly, but he didn’t feel as though one wrong move would send him to his knees again.

“Draco, I…” Hermione began, but he shook his head and looked at the class.

“That spell was created by Snape himself. It was dark magic, and it was designed to very seriously maim, if not kill someone. Do not think that this spell is easy or does not take a toll on you. It does, and it will. Both using it and receiving it. Remember the counter-curse carefully. It might just save your life one day,” Draco said to the curious 7th and 8th year eyes. Then, he turned to Professor Ludwig. “You’re right to teach them about this. It’s a scary curse, a very easily misfired one. They deserve to know. But don’t ask me to use such dark spells on Hermione. On anyone for that matter. I won’t do that… anymore. Please,” Draco ended on a softer note, looking down at his shoes. The professor nodded once, and without removing his eyes from Draco and Hermione, he addressed the class. “You are dismissed. Take this lesson to heart and remember the counter-curse wisely. I’ll be expecting to see you all have the proper incantation of it next class.” Ludwig stepped forward then, to grasp Draco’s arm, the one Hermione wasn’t clutching with guilt-stricken fear in her eyes, but Draco shook them both off. 

“I’m not angry. I understand. You know that I know all about this stuff. But I can’t use it on her. I can’t,” Draco said, and turned away to grab his things as the last of the students left the class, whispering among themselves. “I’m going to see Madam Pomfrey, if you could let Professor Sprout know I’ll be missing from Herbology today,” Draco said to Hermione, and he could see she was still crying. She nodded once, but didn’t move from her spot. He knew she likely had some residual PTSD from the war, as they all did, and the panic of trying to save someone when you didn’t know the cure was probably horrific. 

He walked down the hallways slowly to Madam Pomfrey. Too much movement and he’d get dizzy. He hoped she wouldn’t take too much of her anger towards him out on him, and would simply give him a once over and perhaps some Essence of Dittany, and then send him on his merry way.

Fuck Herbology, fuck Defence Against the Dark Arts, fuck Ludwig, fuck Pomfrey, and fuck this school for becoming his new prison. Thank Merlin for Pansy’s party being this evening. He was going to need a massive glass of firewhiskey.

You know, to remain so unfadingly numb.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello angels! I hope you are all well. This idea came to out of nowhere about 2 weeks and I have obsessively planned it out since then. So here it is! Please note that Draco has the Elder Wand in this tale, so ignore the fact that Harry so rudely snapped that thing in the end. We're pretending that didn't happen.  
> Anyways, this is going to be really dirty, so if you don't like that... don't read any further. Also Draco has RECURRING SUICIDAL IDEATIONS, so please be aware of these and take heed of this warning.  
> See you next time!


	2. A Little Death

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 𝑨 𝑳𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒍𝒆 𝑫𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒉 - 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑵𝒆𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒃𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒉𝒐𝒐𝒅  
> "Dancing through the night  
> A vodka and a sprite  
> A glimpse of the silhouettes  
> A night that they never forget" 

Pomfrey had been kind to Draco, much to his surprise, and was all too eager to help him clear up his injuries. McGonagall must have spoken with her and informed her that yes, Draco Malfoy did have a heart, and yes, he did have a desire to do better, or else she likely would not have been so helpful when he saw her for the first time since the war.

Draco still felt a little off when he finally left the hospital wing, but certainly more stable than he had when he’d left Ludwig and Hermione standing shell shocked in the DADA classroom. He felt bad leaving Hermione there like that, but reminded himself that she viewed him as a charity case, and he was in no way shape or form going to let her act upon that. Draco was his own man, and he didn’t need the Gryffindor Princess pitying him.

He hoped no one pitied him. He’d rather they hate him.

The walk from the hospital to the Slytherin dorms was long, but not excruciating. He knew Pansy would be skipping Herbology, as she always did, so he was bound to find her lurking in the common room, waiting for his arrival. When he spoke softly to the tapestry, the door swung open, and he was surprised to find Blaise and Theo sitting inside along with Pansy. Luckily, Daphne was nowhere to be seen.

“Mate! Are you alright?” Blaise asked, leaping over the back of the couch to stand in front of him. He gave Draco a onceover, making sure he couldn’t spot any residual damage.

“I’m alright, Zabini, calm down. It wasn’t that big of a deal,” Draco said, slipping past him to sit on the velvet chair across from the couch. He was tired, but he really wasn’t in that much pain.

“Dude, you were bleeding. Everywhere. It was horrifying. I’ve never seen a spell so brutal put on display in class like that,” Theo said, eyeing him from across the table. Draco merely shrugged.

“And to do it to yourself? Man, that must have sucked. Potter hit you with one of those once? I might have just died from sheer panic of seeing my blood all around me,” Blaise replied, once again returning to his seat beside Theo. Pansy flicked her long black hair over her shoulder and scoffed.

“Why would you waste an opportunity to hit Hermione Granger square in the chest with one of those?” She asked much too sweetly for what she was saying. Draco glared at her.  
“Pansy, stop,” Theo said, but Draco cut him off.

“I have hurt her plenty of times before. I don’t need to do it again. Besides, I’m on strict parole,” he said, amd Pansy merely rolled her eyes.

“Okay, and? A teacher asked you to. And to turn it then on yourself? I would have relished in the opportunity to hit her with something that would damage her pretty little face,” Pansy said, and Theo and Blaise both held their breath in anticipation of what Draco might do to her.

“And that is why you’re known as an insufferable bitch. Shall we go?” Draco said, quickly changing the subject so as not to dive over the lounge and throttle her pale neck. Draco knew Pansy hated Hermione, but he figured they were past all that evil nonsense. The Dark Lord was dead, there was no reason for Slytherin to remain the most hated house of all. He was surprised any of them could must up energy to be cruel anymore. Draco sure couldn’t.

Pansy scowled, but stood to grab her coat, the boys following suit. The four of them made their way through the halls of Hogwarts, and out the front door.

The rules for 8th years were fairly lax, given that were all war veterans and were exhausted beyond repair. Sure, they were still made to attend class and hand in homework, but for things like trips to Hogsmeade and off the grounds, they were pretty much given free reign. It was difficult to get a parent trapped in Azkaban to sign a permission slip.

The walk there was quiet, with Blaise and Theo whispering quietly behind him, and Pansy storming forward at a ridiculous pace, leaving Draco to walk briskly but quietly between them. He didn’t mind the silence, however, and enjoyed being left alone to his thoughts. But of course, the dream was too good to last.

“Draco mate, I think we need to do something to get you out of this stupor you’re in. I’m thinking firewhiskey, and _girls._ If you know what I mean,” Blaise said suggestively, throwing his arm around Draco’s shoulders and falling into step with him. Draco rolled his eyes.

“No, Blaise, I do not think I need girls to make me feel better. It’s likely to make me feel the exact opposite, in fact. I will probably be miserable”. Blaise scoffed loudly, pretending to be offended.

“Draco, you’ve got it all wrong. Girls are dying to be with you, and this party is only going to make that more obvious. I want you to loosen up! We need to find you a sweet shag,” Blaise went on, and Draco suddenly felt incredibly uncomfortable, especially with Theo not offering anything to the conversation on his right side.

“Girls are not dying to be with me, Blaise,” Draco said, not taking his eyes off the path ahead.

“Yes, they are, it’s so painfully obvious. Even Daphne and Pansy. You’ve got that brooding bad boy thing going on, they’re eating it right up. They want to know what it’s like to be shagged by the Dark Lord’s prodigy,” Blaise said. Theo coughed into a fist, and Draco grew bright red, all the way to the tips of his ears.

“That’s… that’s not a selling point, Blaise. People don’t want that. I’m like, a poisoned wine at this point. Why drink poisoned wine when you can have normal wine?” Draco asked, waving his hand at himself and then to Blaise. Blaise and Theo had never taken the Dark Mark, so were much less shunned by their peers, although their desire to still hang around Draco made them prime targets for harassment. 

“Nah, man, that just isn’t true. Sure, the girls want a slice of Theo and I, but there is more mystery when it comes to you. High risk, high reward. Plus, they all want to see the Mark,” Blaise replied, eyeing Draco’s right arm sleeve. Draco sighed. This was not what he wanted. The last thing he needed was Blaise thinking that girls looking at him meant anything other than disdain and anger. The Mark wasn’t sexy, it was ugly, and the brooding aura he had going on was because he struggled daily to keep himself alive.

“I’ll… I’ll think about it, Blaise,” Draco said, hoping this would get Zabini off his back and he’d eventually forget about it. Blaise gave his back a quick smack, a grin breaking out over his face.

“That’s my boy! A couple of firewhiskey shots, and I promise, the girls will be obsessed,” Blaise suggested with a wink, and started walking ahead to where Pansy was entering the small shop that sold alcohol. Draco looked a bit stricken, and Theo smiled at him gently.

“I’m sure the novelty of having you get laid will wear off soon. Blaise just wants you to be happy,” Theo said, and Draco had to sigh again. He knew that his friend had the best intentions, which was why Draco wasn’t snapping at him. It was just… not the kind of therapy he needed right now. Perhaps he should go visit a mind healer.

Perhaps he should put himself in an early grave.

Draco shook his head, clearing the thoughts from his mind. “I know. It’s fine. I just don’t think I’m… interested in that right now. I think it will just make me feel even more empty. I need to focus on me right now,” Draco said, and Theo nodded. The two followed Blaise and Pansy into the liquor shop and found Pansy leaning over the counter speaking with the shop owner. Blaise was nowhere to be seen.

“I know. That’s the perfect amount. Any less and I will have the lamest party ever. I want everyone sufficiently drunk,” Pansy was saying, laying money out on the counter meticulously. She counted it all perfectly and slid an extra few galleons in as a tip. The shopkeeper gave her a small bow and pointed to the 10 barrels against the wall to the left.

“10? Pansy, really?” Theo said softly, scowling at the obscene amount of liquor before him. It didn’t take much to get drunk off fire whiskey, and 10 massive barrels felt like way too much for a simple party. Somehow Draco doubted that this was as lowkey as she initially suggested.

“I don’t want to run out. Besides, I’m sure it will get utilized again throughout the year,” Pansy said, giving Draco a sideways glance. He rolled his eyes and looked anywhere but at her. Yes, Draco liked to drink, but not _that_ much. 10 seemed extreme. The three of them shrunk down the barrels, and tucked them safely away into their pockets to travel back to Hogwarts with.

“Where is Zabini?” Draco asked, and Pansy shrugged.

“He should be-“ she began, but just as she did, the man in question came quickly out of the backroom that was hidden behind a curtain of red beads.

“Sorry. Just getting my own special drink. I’m ready to go when you guys are,” he said, and Pansy clucked her tongue irritatingly.

“Zabini, can’t you ever just not be cryptic? Drink the fire whiskey like a good boy, and don’t be so pretentious,” she muttered, but Blaise just grinned.

“Oh, I will. This is just a little something extra. To go on top. Spice things up,” Blaise said with a wicked grin on his face. It made Draco nervous. He had spent enough time with dark wizards to know when a smile and a statement were hiding something. No one had ever been straight forward when it came to working for Voldemort, always speaking in riddles and tongues. No one wanted to say the wrong thing, so they never said the right thing either. 

“Who needs to spice up fire whiskey?” Theo whispered in Draco’s ear, and the boy smirked. Whatever Blaise was up to, he wanted no part of it. That was between Blaise, the firewhiskey and his insatiable need to get laid every single night.

“Alright, let’s get moving. We need to get this into the Room before anyone notices, and make sure everything is set up accordingly,” Pansy said with a flick of her hair over her shoulder. The three boys followed her out, knowing that despite their size and influence, when it came to partying, Pansy called all the shots. She had them whipped as her little slaves since day one.

Draco was careful to not bump the liquids in his pocket too much so as not to crack a barrel. IF he began losing some of the drink, he knew Blaise and Pansy would make him chug it like the raunchy way muggles did in dingy bars. They called it ‘shotgunning’, and it was debased and disgusting. Chugging a shrunk down container of firewhiskey was the same as chugging a full sized one, Draco had learned the hard way in his 5th year. That had been a dark and scary time for him, and he hoped to never have a repeat. He had drained his entire collection of Pepper-Up potion over that night, and had since learned to control his alcohol intake much better.

They approached the school as Pansy continued to drone on about how the room needed to look, and who was coming. Draco’s ears perked up at a few names.

“You invited Luna? And Hermione? I thought you hated them. You made it abundantly clear you wanted Hermione dead not 2 hours ago,” Draco said, wondering where this strange addition to the guest list had come from.

Pansy scoffed at him. “I don’t want them _dead_ , Draco. I just wanted to mess Granger up a little bit, knock her down a few pegs on her ladder to perfection. It will be fine; I wanted all the 8th years to come. A few 7th years too. Just to keep things interesting. Who knows, maybe the Princess of Gryffindor will be a fun party animal? If she could just get the damn books out of her ass,” Pansy said, before laughing at her own joke. Draco knew better than to trust Pansy, so he took what she said with a grain of salt. The part of him that longed for the dark still would relish in Pansy getting Hermione Granger wasted and watching her make a fool of herself, but the other half of him, the side that wanted to do better in this lifetime, knew he’d have to keep an eye on them. Pansy could be a real cunt when she wanted to be, which was very often. She flourished in it.

They walked quietly through the doors of Hogwarts, and hopped quickly onto a moving staircase to take them upwards. Pansy continued to go on about her party, but Draco couldn’t focus on it. His brain was entirely elsewhere, not even latching onto a real thought. Just drifting. Exhausted.

Draco was very, very exhausted.

“Pansy, I’d love to help you with all of this, but I need to lie down for a bit,” Draco said once they reached the landing before the Room of Requirement. She turned and gave him a scathing look.

“Oh no you don’t, mister. I need all the help I can get to make sure this party is perfect, and that everyone knows I’m still in charge here".

“Pansy. Either I help you set up, or I actually come to the party. Those are your choices. I hit myself with a rather painful curse and would like to sleep for just a bit,” Draco replied coolly, not giving into her huffing. She frowned, tried pouting, but thought better of it, knowing Draco wouldn’t give a damn about her puppy dog eyes.

“Fine. Go. I’ll just have to do everything myself!” She cried, flinging herself to the wall at the end in order to open it and gain access to their space. Draco rolled his eyes, but Theo came up beside him and spoke softly.

“It’s alright. Go lay down. I’ll take the barrels. Don’t worry about any alarms, I’ll wake you before we have to go, okay? Try and feel better, mate. I’ll deal with her,” he said, and Draco nodded gratefully. Theo consistently had his back, and was often more sick of Pansy than even he was. The only person who truly tolerated her was Blaise, and even he only did so because he was desperate to get in her short plaid skirt. She had no interest, but nevertheless, he persisted.

Draco turned back down the stairwell, and hopped around moving ones until he reached the main floor, headed for the dungeons. He appreciated the cool stone under his fingertips, letting it ground him in reality so as not to stray too far into his exhaustion. He was finally feeling the real draining effects of the Sectumsempra, and he knew he didn’t have much longer before he crashed into oblivion. The moment he reached the tapestry containing the Slytherin common room, he barely had the energy to utter the password before he made his way begrudgingly to his room. A few people smiled and addressed him, but he could give little more than a curt nod.

Draco flopped onto his bed, and cast a protective spell over the door so the only person allowed in would be Theo. He didn’t need Pansy barging in here to try and get him to help her dress, or Daphne attempting to see what he’d wear so she could coordinate, or Blaise trying to get him into a good old fashioned pre drink. He needed real rest, if he were to be able to participate in this evening’s festivities. He was very grateful he had his own room, without having to worry about someone needing something from their trunk or otherwise.  
With attendance being significantly lower this year due to many factors regarding the war, and acknowledging the maturity that came with being an adult student, the Hogwarts staff had decided to give all 8th years their own private bedrooms. They shared a bath, similar to the prefects, but that wasn’t nearly as bad as he thought it would be. Daphne had been sure to create a schedule so the boys would never find themselves near a tub full of naked girls, and the boys would have the privacy they needed to do “whatever it is you creatures do in there”. Draco had been so grateful to hear that he’d have his own space, because the façade of aloofness he was exuding at all moments could only be maintained for so long before he needed a place to crash and let all the lingering pain out. Like right now. Draco couldn’t even be bothered to cry, but being able to let his emotions out however he wanted, was critical if he wanted to maintain sanity. And right now, sleep was the only thing that could cure the dull ache in his body. 

So, he closed his eyes, and drifted off.

After what felt like not nearly enough time, a tentative knock came to his door. Draco cracked one eye open and mumbled an incoherent acceptance of admittance.  
Theo walked in, looking as dashing as he normally did. White button up shirt, black slacks and a very expensive looking watch was worn on his wrist, and he smiled at Draco kindly.  
“Alright, get the hell up. Time to go. We need to get you in something other than the clothes you almost died in”. Theo began rummaging through his closet, throwing a black button up and black slacks on top of Draco. He pulled out a small box, opening it and grinning. “Time to take these bad boys for a spin”.

Draco looked over to see what he was holding and groaned. Two diamond cufflinks in the shape of dragons, green emeralds for wings, were sitting nestled in the soft velvet. Theo had discovered them a few years back, asking Draco why he never wore them. Draco had reminded him they were obscene, and would only draw attention to the fact that Draco was named after a constellation. And his mother called him ‘little dragon’. It seemed absurd.

But Draco knew it would only be a matter of time before Theo pulled them out and made him wear them. If Draco fought him on it, he was likely to pin them into Draco’s wrists.

Permanently.

“Fine. I’m going. But I can’t promise I’ll stay long, I still feel terrible”. That wasn’t entirely true. Draco felt much better than he had when he went to sleep, and felt his body only twinge in subtle notes of pain. The nap had done him wonders.

“That’s fair. Honestly, I’m just happy you’re getting out. Even if it’s just for a bit. I’ll be sure to kick anyone’s ass if they attempt to make you stay,” Theo laughed, and Draco smiled at him. He could stay for a bit, perhaps it _would_ do him some good to exist outside his own reclusive bubble. Just for an hour or so. Then he could disappear back to his room with a flask of fire whiskey and a book.

Dressing in Theo’s choices, Draco was content. It wasn’t anything out of his normal realm of outfits, sans the ridiculous cufflinks, but it was comfortable and subtle, nonetheless. He could easily blend in with the crowd in this outfit, and sneak away just as easily. The two left Draco’s room shortly after, coming down to the common room to see it completely barren of life.  
“Figured you’d want to sneak in after it’s already started. You know, fashionably late,” Theo said with a laugh.

“That is how I prefer to arrive,” Draco replied, running a hand through his pale hair. He felt slightly better than he had this morning, and significantly better than he had after DADA class, so he knew that a bit of partying would be alright. Especially with a glass of fire whiskey in hand.

The walk to the Room of Requirement was quiet, with Draco and Theo being content in each other’s silence. Theo had always been the softer side of the friendship, with Blaise being the life of the party to keep them all going. Draco had only recently shrunk back to reach Theo’s level of introversion, after the war. The horrible things in his mind kept him quiet, and it had really started to show 8th year.

Once there, the duo did their mandatory pace back and forth thrice, before requesting entrance. Once inside, Draco almost had to turn around and walk right back out.

The room was dim, barely lit enough with floating candles to illuminate the faces around them. And faces there were. The room was full of students, much more than could be called a ‘small party’. All the 8th year students were there, it seemed, along with a handful of 7th years. Draco spotted Ginny Weasley’s fire red hair in the distance, bopping along to some music he did not recognize. Neville Longbottom was there, his arm slung around a girl Draco did not know. Neville had grown out of his chubby cheeks and floppy hair, instead growing tall and lean, with sharp features to match. It didn’t surprise Draco to see girls flock to him, but it did shock him to see Neville be able to actually woo one into his arms. 

Hermione was there too, and Draco almost stumbled when he caught sight of her. A pink dress adorned her tan skin, long sleeved with a short tulle bottom, and she looked absolutely ravishing. Nothing revealing, but it hugged her just right and a small part of Draco’s brain reminded him how much he would very much enjoy taking it off of her.

Across the room, Pansy was chatting with Daphne and Padma, glasses of amber liquid in their hands. Pansy had, of course, chosen a slinky black dress covered in sparkly sequins, matching her sleek black hair. Daphne had gone for a dress in a deep green velvet colour with off the shoulder sleeves, and although Draco loathed even the sight of her, he had to admit that the outfit complimented her well. Theo nudged Draco forward, ushering him to one of the many barrels around the room. 

“Let’s put a drink in ourselves, yeah?” Theo said, and Draco nodded quickly. This wasn’t what he was expecting, and the time he had decided to spend here seemed to be getting shorter and shorter. He could already hear the dark thoughts swirling around his head, making him uncomfortable around so many people.

The two marched straight to a barrel, and after Theo had poured both of them a glass, Draco was quick to shoot the entire thing down. Theo raised an eyebrow, moderately shocked by Draco’s quick actions. “That kind of night, is it?” he asked, but Draco merely scowled at him, and held the glass out to be refilled. The liquor burned his throat, but Draco didn’t so much as flinch. It felt good. A good pain.

Draco felt he deserved a little more suffering.

The next glass was sipped much slower, and the two let their eyes flicker around the room, watching the others mingle and dance. All too soon, an evidently already drunk Blaise bounded up to them. 

“My men! So glad you have graced us with your presence. I was beginning to worry you wouldn’t show,” he slurred, and Draco rolled his eyes.

“We’d said we’d be here, so here we are”. Draco was snippy, but Blaise didn’t seem to care.

“Touchy, touchy. Here, this is for you, my king. A gift from the gods,” Blaise said as he handed Draco a shot glass of more fire whiskey, and Draco didn’t spare it a second thought. He wasn’t quite at a level of drunk he felt comfortable at, so he didn’t mind having a bit more. After Blaise and Theo found themselves with shot glasses of their own, Blaise raised his in the air.

“To the Kings of Hogwarts. May we always walk with our heads held high, our minds sharper than a blade, our bodies never failing us, and our women always following us. To Slytherin!” Blaise cheered, and Theo laughed loudly. Even Draco couldn’t help but crack a smile. The three sucked back the liquid fire, and Blaise gave Draco a funny look, a sly grin on his face. “Have fun, stay safe,” he said as he slunk back into the crowd. Theo looked over at Draco and grinned.

“What a fucking weird man,” Theo said, turning back to admire the people around him. Although it wasn’t really Draco’s scene, the people watching aspect of it intrigued him. How young adults moved about one another, how they worked a room in hopes of ending up in someone else’s dorm room later.

Draco’s tongue felt a bit funny in his mouth, and his body had a strange tingling feeling to it. He thought one more shot with Blaise would put him at a good level, but it seemed that one more shot was exactly what he did not need. As soon as the liquid had hit his mouth, he’d noticed a strange taste in the glass. Not bad, just odd.

Like cherries and honey.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ok listen i have decided to split this chapter in two because frankly it is way too long for one because i'd like to draw this party out a bit. stay tuned. xx


	3. Music To Watch Boys To

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 𝑴𝒖𝒔𝒊𝒄 𝑻𝒐 𝑾𝒂𝒕𝒄𝒉 𝑩𝒐𝒚𝒔 𝑻𝒐 - 𝑳𝒂𝒏𝒂 𝑫𝒆𝒍 𝑹𝒆𝒚  
> "Velveteen and living single  
> It never felt that right to me  
> I know what only the girls know  
> Lies can buy you eternity"

“Let’s go talk to Pansy. I’m sure she would like to be informed that you are here,” Theo said, grabbing Draco’s elbow. The two snaked their way through the crowd, pressing against the seemingly endless number of bodies. How did Pansy get away with all of this? Surely someone would notice every upper year student out of bed. 

As they approached the three girls, Pansy turned to make eye contact with them. Her usual smirk dropped, and she looked taken aback at the sight of Draco.

“Surprised to see me here, Pansy?” Draco asked, chalking her shock up to him being very off for the last month and not having any interest in parties. It didn’t surprise him that she had little faith in him to actually arrive, but a part of him stuttered at the fact that people expected less than the bare minimum from him. He really needed to do better, to try harder, but it was so damn hard. Draco didn’t feel like doing anything but floundering.

“No, I… You look really nice. Like, really nice. I wasn’t expecting you to look so… good,” Pansy said, her eyes roaming over Draco. It wasn’t unlike Pansy to check Draco out, to check any man out, but the way she did it left Draco feeling so… exposed. He watched as her hand jerked at her side, trying to reach out to him, but she forced it back down. Daphne, however, did not hold back.

She stepped right up to him and ran a hand over his silken shirt. “She’s not wrong. You look rather divine this evening,” she said, leaning closer. “And you smell like… cherries and honey”. Her last statement left Draco stepping away from her, giving her an odd look. What the fuck was she talking about? Draco’s cologne tended to leave him smelling like green apple and forests, so he’d been told, even sometimes mint. But cherries and honey? No, not that he could recall. That seemed way off.

“She’s right. You do smell like cherries and honey. Sweet, but not too much. What on earth are you wearing? It’s _heavenly,_ ” Pansy drawled on, losing control of her hand again to place it on Draco’s forearm. He flinched away from the touch and gave Theo a look of exasperation. Theo looked just as weirded out as Draco did.

“Okay ladies, this has been fun, but we’re going to go do our rounds,” Theo said, steering Draco away from the lustful looks Pansy, Daphne and Padma were giving Draco. Padma sighed as he walked by and wobbled on her feet a bit before waving at him. Draco had never in his life spoken to Padma, so it was really strange for her to suddenly deign to show him any sort of acknowledgement, let alone a wave. Draco was very put off by the interaction.

As soon as they got away, Draco whirled around to face Theo. “Do I actually smell like cherries? And bloody honey?” he asked, and Theo leaned in close to smell his neck. He shook his head in response, running a hand over his chin.

“No… you smell like green apples. Woodsy, maybe. Your usual cologne. But definitely not cherries. And definitely not ‘sweet’,” Theo responded, and Draco sighed. What the fuck was going on with those three? Someone needed to cut them off, liquor wise. Theo stared at him oddly, before eyeing someone over his shoulder. His eyebrows raised, and his eyes drifted back to Draco. “Don’t look now, but Granger is making her way over here,” he said, and Draco groaned. He was not interested in having her pity him right now, or try to coddle him and his injuries. Not tonight.

“Good evening Theo,” she said as she approached the duo. He gave her a small smile and a nod, grabbing her hand to kiss her knuckles. Ever the gentleman.

“Hermione. A pleasure,” he replied to her, and Hermione smiled back. She turned to face Draco and the smile dropped from her face. Her eyes went wide and her jaw slacked a bit.

“Draco… I… You look really good. Like, really, really good,” she said huskily, eyes drifting from his face to his neck and collarbones. “Why have I never noticed how good you look before? I mean, I’ve noticed, but this…,” she reached up and ran a hand through his hair, “this is a great look for you”. Hermione’s face was flushed a bit, and Draco assumed she had way too much to drink, although her words were not slurred, and she seemed sure on her feet.

“Um, thank you? Granger, are you feeling alright?” Draco asked, trying to keep a respectful distance between them. Theo looked absolutely taken aback, and just about as shocked as Draco was.

“Oh, I feel fine. Great, actually. Oh my god, you smell like… like cherries and honey. So sweet. It’s delectable,” Hermione uttered, running her hands up Draco’s biceps to his neck, as if Theo weren’t standing right there. This was completely out of the realm of normal for Hermione, and Draco was rather uncomfortable. Trying to spring up a friendship with him was one thing, but hitting on him? Quite another.

“Uh, yeah, so I’ve been told,” Draco said, hands on Hermione’s shoulders to keep her from leaning into him. “Look, I’ve got to get going, so, um, I’ll talk to you later?” He said, and she looked sad all of a sudden.

“Oh. Alright. Well, find me later. Please,” she said with a soft smile, her eyes round and doe-like. She looked absolutely divine, in Draco’s eyes, but she was acting so strange that he almost couldn’t focus on it.

Almost.

Theo and he ripped away from her at an unnecessary speed, and they finally found a secluded corner. Theo’s eyes were wide with shock, and Draco gathered he probably looked just as stricken.

“What the fuck? It’s one thing for Pansy and Daphne to act all weird with you, but Granger? No fucking way, there isn’t enough alcohol in the world for that girl to say those things to you,” Theo said exasperated, and Draco shot him a look.

“Jeez, thanks,” he mumbled, but Theo didn’t seem to care.

“I’m serious man. And if that wasn’t weird enough, why are they all smelling honey and cherries? I seriously can’t smell it, at all. There’s no way,” Theo said, scratching at his chin. Draco was equally as lost, because he couldn’t smell it on himself either. His cologne hadn’t changed, and neither had his aftershave. The girls should not be smelling anything new, and they definitely shouldn’t be commenting the way they do. Daphne may be obsessed with Draco, but she was more subtle with her advances, and Pansy would usually check him out and then insult him. Not tell him he looked good.

Draco suddenly remembered the shot. It had tasted like cherry and honey. Sweet, with subtle notes of fruit to it. It hadn’t been bad, but it certainly was not the normal taste of firewhiskey.

Something had been in that shot.

“We need to find Blaise,” Draco said, shooting forward. Theo stumbled up from his leaning spot, and barely caught up.

“Why?” Theo asked him, and Draco felt his blood bubble a bit.

“I think he put something in my drink,” Draco said angrily, stomping onwards until he spotted the tall man’s head over the crowd. Theo stuttered behind him, trying to keep up with Draco’s tirade. Blaise had his arm around two blonde 7th years, and they were giggling at something he was whispering to them. Draco stopped directly in front of him and cleared his throat. Blaise looked up, and a huge smiled split his face.

“Draco! My man! Meet Kiera and Ophelia, I was just telling them about-“

“I don’t care what you were telling them about. Did you put something in my drink?” Draco demanded, but Blaise continued to remain unfazed.

“Draco, why ever would you think such a thing?” Blaise asked with faux innocence, batting his eyelashes in Draco’s direction. He felt fury boil in his blood, knowing that was just as good as a confession from Blaise.

“You little…” Draco began, making a move to head towards Blaise. He raised an eyebrow, but otherwise made no motion to move. The girls scrambled to create distance.

But it didn’t matter anyways, Theo was right there to grasp his arms and hold him back. “Draco, stop. We need to talk like adults. You’re not getting in trouble for hitting _Blaise_ of all people. Please,” he spoke softly, and Draco reluctantly backed down. He felt the heat from his fists and his cheeks dissipate, and he took a cleansing breath. He sat himself in a chair across from Blaise, who continued to act indifferently.

“You better start talking. Now”.

The entire time Blaise spoke to Draco and Theo, girls were acting like animals. They’d stare at him from across the room with a deep-set hunger, or if they were bolder, they’d even approach. Running their hands through his hair, over his shoulders and arms, around his neck, all the while purring how he smelt like _cherries and honey_ and they _just can’t get enough._

Draco was having a right hard time paying attention.

After shooing way another random 7th year that Draco wasn’t sure he’d ever seen in his life, he spoke. “So you slipped an ancient lust potion in my fire whiskey, and now girls are unknowingly obsessed with me?” Draco asked, feeling the rage rumble through his veins. This is not what he wanted. He wanted a quiet night in with a glass of amber courage and a good book and maybe even going to bed early. 

Exciting.

“Well, sort of, but not exactly. It enhances the feelings others have for you. It won’t work on people that aren’t already harbouring some sort of attraction. It just makes it stronger, makes them bolder. So, everyone who has said something to you…” Blaise wiggled his eyebrows suggestively, “is already into you. They just now have lost the barriers that held them back. It’s amplified, tenfold. The cherries and honey thing is just a signifier. It draws them in, but those who aren’t interested won’t smell anything. All it’s done is amp up what you already have, Draco, just like I told you. Girls want that dark aura”.

Draco was unsettled. Everyone who said something to him… already found him attractive? That didn’t seem right. Hermione didn’t see him as anything more than a project, something new for her to fix since the war ended. She always needed to have her hands busy, and Draco was an exciting challenge.

“And how long will this potion last, hm?” He asked Blaise, who rolled his eyes.

“12 hours, less than any other lust potion. So you better make good use of it, it cost me a small fortune,” Blaise said roughly. Draco scoffed.

“Blaise, I didn’t ask for this. This is a nightmare! None of these girls are coherent enough to even consent! They’re trapped by a potion!” Draco shouted at him, growing more frustrated by the minute. How could Blaise think Draco’s idea of a good time was taking advantage of a witch? Rape wasn’t something that appealed to Draco in any regard, and that’s exactly what this felt like.

“It’s not taking advantage of them! All it did was amplify _you_ which makes _them_ want you even more than they already do! Anyone acting up around you is already interested, mate. Theo and I aren’t bothered by it. Just those that want you. You just got even hotter in everyone’s eyes, and it’s doing wonders for them. You are a nightmare to try and talk to lately, so this made it all the easier for them. Problem solved,” Blaise said, returning to his nonchalant demeanor. Draco was panicking, nervous twinges flaring up through his body. He felt like he couldn’t trust anyone, look at anyone, without them mentally undressing him. Girls were acting incredibly strange, and the sheer number of them left Draco’s mind reeling. That many girls? That many girls wanted him? Something about this didn’t seem accurate.

“I’m leaving. I’m going back to my room and hiding until this passes. I cannot believe you’ve done this, Blaise. I told you I didn’t want to have sex. It’s only going to make me feel worse, and taking advantage of someone is only going to add to the crippling guilt. I’ll pay for half of this mess, since you spent so much money on something you should have taken yourself, but nothing more. And I suggest you don’t attempt to speak with me for a good while, until I’m less angry,” Draco said with a huff, rising out of his seat. Theo stood too, and stepped away from Blaise.

“I can come too..” he began, but Draco cut him off.

“It’s fine, Theo. Thanks. But I think I’m just going to call it a night. I’ll see you in 12 hours,” Draco spoke softly, and Theo nodded once, understanding.

“I’ll talk to Blaise. And I’ll bring some breakfast back for you tomorrow,” Theo replied, and Draco gave a small thanks. He shuffled through the crowd to the door, narrowly avoiding the women around him.

It appeared that every woman was affected. He was touched and poked and prodded by any girl who happened to get too close. Was Blaise sure this didn’t just affect the entire female population? Because he highly doubted that every girl at Hogwarts had some sort of deep fascination with Draco, a desire to lay in his silk sheets, be touched by him. He was an ex-Death Eater, for fuck’s sake. The Dark Mark still marred his pale skin, despite the endless rituals. He was quiet and reclusive, offering nothing to anyone except contempt for his friends and the occasional flicker of kindness for Granger. But he wasn’t a good person. What was it with women wanting a tortured soul?

Finally, Draco was able to leave through the gated entrance to the Room. He took a deep breath and set off one foot in front of the other towards the staircases.

He didn’t make it long before someone walked around the corner and ran smack dab into him. He caught their elbows on reflex, steadying them.

A small oof and a flash of curled red hair let Draco know exactly who was in front of him; Ginny Weasley.

“Oh Merlin, I’m so sorry…Draco,” she said, eyes growing wide and her arms growing limp in Draco’s hands. Draco tilted his head back and groaned.

“Not you too,” he said, incredulous. Ginny Weasley hated Draco maybe even more than Harry Potter had. She was a menace with her wand, and Draco had unfortunately been on the receiving end of her curses and hexes more than once. She spat on the ground he walked on, and he was certain she was the one leading the force that wanted him dead. Really, truly, dead. 

“Not me too, what?” She asked, a dreamy look in her eyes. She hadn’t let go of Draco, and he was worried if he did, she would crumble to the floor in a heap. 

“Look, Ginny, this isn’t you. You don’t want this. Blaise slipped a lust potion into my drink that’s making girls incredibly attracted to me. You don’t really want me,” Draco said in a very obviously stressed tone. He moved his hands up Ginny’s arms to her shoulders, trying to keep her at a distance. She bit her lip when he did so, closing her eyes. Draco sighed. Even holding her at a distance was a turn on. 

“Okay, maybe that’s true, but I still feel it. This feels nice. I want you to touch me. I have for a while. And I fucking hate it, but I am painfully attracted to you. My family would absolutely die if they knew, but it’s the truth,” Ginny rumbled out, not opening her eyes but placing her hands on top of Draco’s where they rested on her shoulders. Draco wasn’t sure what to do. Letting her go would invite her to step closer to him, but leaving his hands on her was doing things that he really was hoping they wouldn’t.

“Ginny, you don’t mean that. You don’t want me. The potion is making me more attractive; you’re just gaining momentum here. You really don’t want me to do this, no matter how tiny your crush may be,” Draco tried again, but Ginny’s eyes flew open and her hands wrapped around Draco’s forearms forcefully.

“Actually, you look the same to me. Attractive nonetheless, but you’re still you. You are the same person. I want this. I am so sick of Ron acting out the way he does, he gets to treat Hermione like garbage, and get away with it, because he’s a _war hero_. He dictates everything I do because he thinks he can now that he’s an Auror and famous. I want to see the look on his face when he finds out that he can’t control me,” Ginny said powerfully, not an ounce of slurred hesitation in her voice.

“I don’t,” Draco mumbled, but Ginny pretended not to hear.

“Come on Draco. I know you want to; I can see it in your eyes. I can _smell_ it. You want to touch me too. Just once, we can keep it a secret. I won’t even tell Ron if you really don’t want. I have to know, please… Draco, please,” she begged, and Draco’s resolve began to crumble. She looked gorgeous. Red hair curled framed her face, a light dotting of freckles across her cheeks. Her green eyes bore into his own icy ones, and his hands tensed around her shoulders, but his elbows faltered. Ginny stepped up close to him, leaning into his chest and looking up at him. “Please Draco, I can comprehend that you’re telling me there is a potion in your veins, but I want this, have wanted this for a while now. I just feel this sort of… courage to tell you. This isn’t making me want you any more or any less. I just don’t give a fuck about the barriers anymore, for some reason. Come,” she whispered, dragging him behind one of the stone pillars. “I want this from you. Let me do this. I want to know what it’s like to touch the Draco Malfoy,” she finished off once they were tucked away from possible prying eyes. It still felt too exposed, but Draco couldn’t be arsed anymore. Too many women had touched Draco this evening, and his strength to turn every single one down had become waveringly thin, even if he did say he didn’t want to sleep with anyone tonight. He was still a teenager. 

“Fuck, Weasley, if you regret this tomorrow, just know I tried to stop you,” he said, moving his hands from her arms and into her hair.

She smirked at him. “Trust me, I won’t,” she whispered, before leaning into Draco fully. He caught her and pressed his lips against hers. She was warm, so very warm against his body, and a decent amount of time had passed since he had held someone so close. Ginny was insistent, a bit forceful, tugging at his hair and neck to get him exactly where she wanted him. Draco tried to slow her down, the kiss fiery and messy, but she wasn’t letting up, so Draco resolved to just give in. Kissing her with as much fire as he could muster at the moment, he slipped his tongue against her lips, asking for entrance. Ginny very much obliged, moaning into his mouth. Draco trailed his hands down from her hair across her neck, gripping the front with his right as his left worked lower, brushing delicately against her stomach that was enclosed in a shimmery red dress. She moaned into his mouth, and let her hands drop to his abs to touch him through the silken material. 

Draco didn’t often think of Ginny, if ever, but something about this felt really good. Sure, Ginny was gorgeous, tall and lithe unlike the brutish ogre-like stature of Ron, but she was so awful to him that he couldn’t think to look past the anger and see her as a girl. She was more like a demon.

But this felt good. Really good. Her hands were explorative, touching him everywhere, and she never relented her kiss. She was driven by a fire, the potion and alcohol working together to make her incredibly bold. She pulled away from his mouth to nip at his neck, and Draco tilted his head back and moaned. That felt good. Draco had always preferred rough sex, pain equalling pleasure, but it wasn’t often the other party agreed.

Her hands pulled at his belt and trouser buttons, fumbling only slightly. Draco still had a grip on Ginny’s neck, the other hand around her waist. He squeezed his thumb and pointer finger on the sides of her throat, and Ginny gasped.

“I don’t think you know what you’re doing,” Draco said, but Ginny completely misinterpreted.

She smirked at him. “I’ve never had any complaints”.

“No, no, I mean, here? In the corridor? Anyone could see us. And the lust potion…” Draco began, but Ginny rolled her eyes.

“I don’t give a fuck if anyone sees us, and I don’t give a fuck about the lust potion. I fucking want this,” she demanded, dropping to her knees before him, forcing Draco to release his hands from her body. His nails dug into the stone wall behind him as she continued to pull him out of his trousers. She began a lazy stroke, and Draco was absolutely mesmerized as she looked up into his eyes. “Tell me how you want this. Show me how you like it,” she said so softly he wasn’t even sure he’d heard her correctly. She looked less emboldened on her knees, almost a tad bit nervous. Perfect.

Draco caved and built up a bulletproof wall of Occlumency around his mind. He let all the thoughts of regretting this drift away, telling himself he could agonize over it later. He let one hand trail into Ginny’s curls, the other cupping her cheek so she could lean into it. “You’re such a good girl, asking me how I want it,” she said, stroking his thumb over her cheekbone. She whimpered a bit. “Now open up. Tongue out,” he finished, and she quickly obliged. Draco pushed his cock into her mouth slowly, not wanting to make her uncomfortable. She went to go look down, but Draco kept a firm grip on her chin. “No, you keep your eyes on me. Hands behind your back, hold your elbows. I’m going to fuck your mouth until I come, understand? If you want me to stop, you need only shake your head. Got it?” He asked, hoping that still giving her some semblance of control would make him feel less guilty tomorrow. She nodded once, eyes never leaving his. He smirked slightly, admiring the sight before him, speaking down to her. “Good girl”. 

Maybe Ron finding out that Draco had defiled his sister might not be so bad.

Although he’d likely get his ass beat.

Draco moved in and out of Ginny’s mouth slowly, relishing in the way she never looked away and kept her arms fully behind her back, letting Draco take control. Her tongue stayed pressed against the underside of his cock, and it felt incredible. Mind blowing, really. Although she didn’t have to do much, simply take it like a good girl, Ginny was right.

She did know what she was doing. No complaints here.

Draco picked up the pace, gripping more tightly in Ginny’s hair as his other hand slipped up to match the first. He tilted his head back in a small groan, before looking back down and seeing Ginny still looking up at him. A tear slipped out the corner of her eye, followed by a second. Draco pulled out of her quickly.

“Are you alright?” he asked her, concerned she had suddenly had a change of heart. But it was quite the opposite.

“Yes, please, Malfoy, please. Keep going, deeper, harder, please,” she begged, practically salivating at the cock before her. Draco’s eyes widened, but he merely placed himself back inside her and continued his thrusts. Obviously, she wanted things rougher, harsher, and Draco wasn’t going to fight her on it. 

“You’re such a dirty girl, Ginny. Who knew you were hiding that all along? Willing to get on your knees in an abandoned hallway for a Death Eater. What would the others think?” He asked her, parts coming out gritted between his death. Ginny moaned, basking in the words Draco spoke to her. She liked it, being spoken to.

She pulled off of him with a lewd pop. “They’d be very, very jealous,” she said huskily, and Draco growled.

Yes, _growled._

He pushed back into her, harsher now. If she was going to say things like that, then he was going to go all out on her. “I didn’t say you could stop, now did I? You are going to keep that pretty mouth open for me, just as I asked. If you want the others to be jealous, you better be a good girl and finish me off. Wouldn’t want to disappoint me now,” he spoke, thrusting deliciously deep inside her mouth. She fought little gags, the tears still leaking profusely out of her eyes, but she never looked away from him. Draco was impressed. Most girls would have given up at this point, their jaws cramped or needing a break to breathe. But Ginny pushed onwards, taking breaths through her nose and keeping her jaw relaxed.

Draco felt his impending orgasm approaching, her mouth with his control providing exactly the kind of attention he needed. “I’m going to come in that gorgeous little throat, alright? Nod once so you understand,” he said, and she did quickly, eyes widening. Draco bit his lip and kept going, gripping her head tightly. It was perfect, heavenly. His orgasm came up quickly, and fireworks exploded behind his eyes as he shot himself down her throat. Ginny never once flinched, taking everything he gave to her as he held her still with her nose close to his lower abdomen. Draco felt blissful, his orgasm seemingly sucking away any and all dark thoughts he’d had about the situation.

Pulling out of her slowly, Draco watched as Ginny closed her eyes for a moment, swallowing his cum. Draco groaned, and the sight would have made him hard again if it hadn’t been 20 seconds ago that he came. He bent down to her level and brushed the tears off her cheeks.

“You can let go of your elbows now, Ginny,” he said, and she did so slowly, wincing slightly at the pain of being solid there for some time. He ran his hands over her arms, trying to ease some of the tension. “You did really good, Ginny. That was amazing,” he said to her, and she beamed at him. Her smile faltered, and she looked at her knees.

“I.. I don’t want to, but I should go back. I told Luna I’d only be a few minutes,” she said softly, and Draco nodded once. She quickly looked up at him, for just a moment. “I’d rather go with you though. Just so you know. I… I want to do that… again,” she spoke softly, trailing off at the end, suddenly unable to meet his eyes. He smirked, noticing her flushed cheeks. She seemed more nervous now than she had when she was attempting to peel his clothes off.

“Okay. It’s alright Ginny. We’ll see how you feel tomorrow. Up to your feet now, yeah?” Draco said, standing from his crouch and offering his hands to Ginny. She took them, rising shakily to her feet. Her knees were bright red, and she wobbled when she was fully upright. Draco let her balance on his arms for a moment, until she felt sure of her own feet. “Alright, love? Good to walk?” He asked her, and she nodded. He let her go, but she pressed up against him and kissed his cheek. Draco was shocked, eyes going wide.

“Thank you. I really, really liked that. Again, please, if you’re willing, sometime. There’s other stuff I’d… like to try,” she said shyly, and Draco couldn’t help the shocked smile that spread across his face.

“Oh yeah? Well, we’ll see about that tomorrow, okay? Back to the party with you. Luna is going to be worried,” he said to her, running his hand over her now messy hair, and turning her towards the Room. She walked forwards, shaking a bit in her heels, but keeping upright, nonetheless. He watched her until she was safely tucked inside the Room of Requirement, before he let his walls of Occlumency fall. 

Guilt crashed over him, so intense he doubled over. Fuck. What the hell had he done? He had taken advantage of Ginny Weasley. It was obscene. And there was no way to take it back, unless he obliviated her, which was also super violating. 

Draco felt like he was going to vomit, or pass out, or both, so he quickly scuttled away, heading to the direction of the Slytherin common room. He needed to put as much distance as he could between himself and the Room of Requirement, Ginny Weasley, and every other girl in this bloody school. 

He’d royally fucked up this time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh god this is gonna be a smutty fuck fest


	4. No Church in the Wild

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 𝑵𝒐 𝑪𝒉𝒖𝒓𝒄𝒉 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑾𝒊𝒍𝒅 - 𝑲𝒂𝒏𝒚𝒆 𝑾𝒆𝒔𝒕 & 𝑱𝒂𝒚-𝒁  
> Will he make it out alive?  
> Alright, alright  
> No church in the wild

When Draco awoke the next morning, he felt a deep crushing sense of doom settle over him. He hadn’t slept very well last night, tossing and turning in his sleep in an attempt to find solace, but none was found. The guilt of what he had done to Ginny was overbearing, and he was terrified to find out how she’d react today. Perhaps she’d kill him on the spot, and he wouldn’t have to fret about it anymore.

Didn’t sound so bad.

Draco vaguely wondered if this sort of thing would violate his parole, and if so, was it Azkaban for him? Sure, he hadn’t actually laced the drink, but it was unlikely that the Wizengamot would think twice about utilizing this as an excuse to ship him off to where they thought he belonged. Looking in the mirror before him, Draco knew it hadn’t all been a fucked-up dream, if the dark hickeys around his neck were anything to go by. Ginny had done quite a number on him, and it was very evident. With a groan, Draco scuttled over to his wardrobe and pulled out a black turtleneck and black slacks, hoping they would cover the marks entirely. 

Once dressed, he slipped on some comfortable loafers, grabbed his book off the nightstand and left his room. It was early, and Draco sincerely hoped that he could avoid every single upper year student for the rest of the day. Maybe even the rest of his life.

Highly unlikely.

The common room was silent, thank Merlin, and Draco slipped out quietly and headed up the stairs away from the dungeons. He made his way to the Great Hall, and found it to be, mercifully, almost entirely empty. There was almost no one at the Slytherin table, and the few students dispersed around were younger, and had no idea what had gone on last night. Placing himself on the end facing the door, so he could make a quick escape should he need to, Draco settled in and pulled out his book. He poured himself some tea and snagged a strawberry scone from a tray. 

Draco didn’t pay too much attention to the door as it opened with each new student, but he glanced up each time just to ensure it wasn’t someone he really didn’t want to see.

Namely, one Ginny Weasley.

It was halfway through his second cup of tea that she graced the room with her presence. He noticed her shock of fiery red hair, bounding into the room with happiness he didn’t think possible for anyone this early on a Saturday. She didn’t seem to notice him, and Draco kept incredibly still in the hopes that maybe it would make him disappear. Hermione walked in alongside her, looking as heavenly as she always did. The two were dressed casually, not bothering with proper attire due to it being a Saturday. Once they were seated at the Gryffindor table, having paid no mind to Draco, he let out the breath he’d been holding. Perhaps they wanted to pretend last night never happened. Now that the lust potion had worn off, perhaps they were back to being disgusted by the mere sight of him.

One could only hope.

Draco had settled back into his book and read through two more chapters before someone plunked down in front of him. He lifted his eyes slowly, only to meet the curious gaze of Ginny Weasley.

Draco almost threw up on the table out of sheer panic.

“Weasley,” he said softly, not wanting to do anything to set her off. He closed his book and laid it beside him, not breaking eye contact. She didn’t say anything for a moment, merely studied him. 

“So how does this lust potion work?” She asked, jumping straight to the elephant in the room. Draco was having a hard time looking at her and not picturing his cock pressed between her lips only a mere eight hours prior. 

“Uh, well, as Blaise explained it, it makes women more attracted to me. Makes them want to approach me, touch me. But it’s worn off now, so there isn’t any more danger,” he said, and her face remained impassive, still studying him. He sighed, and finally looked down at the half-eaten scone on his plate. “Look, Ginny, I’m really sorry, I didn’t know Blaise put that in my drink. I should have held more control and not taken advantage of you last night. I’ll take any hexes you want to-“

“It hasn’t worn off”.

Draco lifted his eyes back up to meet hers. She hadn’t stopped staring at him, but how her hand was placed under her chin in a studious way, as if she hoped to memorize the details of his face. “What do you mean, it hasn’t worn off?”.

“I mean, it hasn’t worn off. Like, the effect, it’s still there. Not to the same degree, though, it’s as if it’s calmed down. But it’s not gone away. It was the only reason I was able to walk my ass over here to talk to you. It felt like a pull, like I needed to go do it because deep down _I wanted to._ It’s faint, but it isn’t gone,” she said, explaining her situation as best she could. Draco’s heart dropped to his feet. He felt sick all over again.

“Blaise told me it would be gone in 12 hours…” Draco dropped his head onto the edge of the table with a groan. “Fuck, Ginny, I’m really sorry. I made a huge fucking mistake. I wasn’t thinking with my head, clearly. You and Harry…” Draco trailed off. He didn’t want to have to deal with Potter and Weasley.

Ginny just scoffed. “Draco, stop. I am evidently coherent. Everything that happened last night was okay. I am okay with it. Perhaps now that whatever is in your system has eased up a bit, I’m a little disappointed in myself for acting so… ridiculous, but I don’t have any regrets. I’d still do it again if I could go back. Whatever Blaise gave you; it isn’t making my mind cloudy. It just made me more confident in my abilities to reel you in, and it made you even more attractive. But I… well, I found you attractive before last night. Don’t fucking tell anyone I told you that. And Harry and I aren’t together, so don’t worry about him killing you,” she said with a wave of her hand, and Draco lifted his head off the table.

“Really? I thought after everything…” Draco trailed off, and Ginny scoffed.

“No. We don’t have time. And he’s going through some stuff right now that I can’t help him with. So, I leave him to his own devices. It’s better this way. We’re still friends. Just not… romantic partners,” she finished off with, looking a bit forlorn. Draco wasn’t entirely sure what to make of the situation with her and Potter, so he didn’t press further. She shook her head, clearing away any thoughts she might have had. “Anyways, what is it he gave you? Perhaps we can look it up and see what the real side effects are,” she said. 

“He never told me. I’ll have to wait till he gets here and ask him,” Draco spoke, and Ginny gave a quick nod.

“Alright,” she replied, and settled in properly at the table, helping herself to some ham and eggs and a cup of pumpkin juice. Draco’s eyes shot upwards as he realized she was staying, but he didn’t say anything. She picked up a copy of _The Daily Prophet_ as she dug into her food, so Draco felt it was safe to resume reading his book, though his mind was elsewhere.

What in the fresh hell had Blaise given him? His mind whirled with the possibilities, going through every possible lust potion he knew of. None had the effects of making the consumer the desirable and was always the other way around. A normal lust potion would have made him fall in love with a certain girl, or every girl, and not normally intended to make him feel rather… well, normal. 

Perhaps the 12-hour window had been a minimum, and it faded off within 24. Ginny herself said the potion had faded, and while still present, wasn’t as overbearing as before. Maybe it was easing up, and by the end of the day, Draco would be back to normal.

Just as he realized he had reread the same page four times, the Hall door burst open. Blaise and Theo walked in, looking incredibly worse for wear. As soon as they were close enough to realize who was sitting across from Draco, they froze, eyes wide open. Draco merely stared, before gesturing at the seats beside them. Walking over slowly, as if terrified of the new Slytherin breakfast addition. 

“Morning,” Theo drawled out, taking a seat beside Draco. Blaise slipped in beside Ginny, terrified to turn and actually look at her. The two knew the kind of menace she was with her wand, and they didn’t fancy being on the receiving end of any of her hexes.

“Good morning,” Ginny said, placing her newspaper down on the bench beside her. “I’m glad you’re here. We have some questions for you,” she spoke directly to Blaise, and his tan skin blanched. 

“Okay, I feel like I should be given a chance to defend myself first,” Blaise said, raising his hands up in mock surrender. Draco slapped his hands over his face and groaned. This is already going well. Ginny raised an eyebrow, but gestured for him to continue. “So, I really thought that replacing the prefect bath water with jiggly pudding was going to be a funny prank, but I see now that it was probably a bitch to clean up, so I regret-“ Blaise droned on, but Ginny held a hand up to stop him.

“What are you talking about? That was you? That’s not at all what I came over here to talk to you about, but I will definitely be shelving that knowledge for later use. But I wanted to talk to you about a different sort of stunt you pulled. Last night,” Ginny said, and Blaise, if even possible, blanched more.

“Oh? Okay, well, then, forget I said anything about the pudding. I have no idea what I was talking about. What stunt last night?” Blaise asked, looking genuinely perplexed as to what he had done.

“The lust potion you gave Draco,” she stated clearly, not bothering to show any shame. Draco knew this conversation was going to take some really weird turns, and he secretly prayed to whatever God was out there to strike him down where he sat.

“The lust potion? You told her?” Blaise asked incredulously, eyeing Draco like he knew Ginny Weasley would be the very last person he would speak to on such a topic. Even Potter would likely come first.

“Uh, well, not directly, I guess…” Draco trailed off, scratching the back of his neck. Ginny rolled her eyes, obviously not caring about Draco’s aversion to telling the boys the entire story.

“He did, sort of. But I could tell anyways. Something was different,” Ginny finished for him, taking another bite of her eggs. Blaise looked between the two of them, and suddenly Draco felt cold fingers on his neck, pulling at his turtleneck sweater. It was Theo.

“Draco, is that a fucking hickey? Scratch that, make it plural; _hickies?_ ” Theo asked, and Draco swatted his hand away. Blaise continued to shift his eyes from Ginny to Draco, before it all clicked into place, and a look mixed between elation, shock, and sheer panic crossed his face.

“No fucking way…” he uttered, and burst out laughing. Ginny rolled her eyes for the millionth time, and wacked Blaise upside the head. Theo tried incredibly hard to stifle his laughs into the palm of his hand, but was struggling immensely.

“Don’t ask for details, you won’t get any here. We want to know what you gave him,” Ginny said, flustered with the boy’s immaturity. But Draco couldn’t blame them. Ginny was last on the list of people that would give Draco the time of day, let alone deign to touch him sexually. But alas, here they were, less than 12 hours later, having spent a rather intimate and filthy time together. It felt so very, very wrong to be discussing it like a science project, but that’s exactly how Draco felt.

“Okay, okay, I’m sorry. You’re just… not even close to who I’d expect to have Draco saunter off with. Pansy maybe, Daphne, definitely, but Ginevra Weasley? Unlikely,” Theo said softly, brushing curls off of his forehead. Ginny scoffed, and sat up straight in her seat.

“Yes, well, here we are. So, Blaise, do tell, what in the fresh hell did you give Draco last night? Don’t spare any details,” Ginny said, and Blaise cleared his throat.

“Listen, I’m gonna be honest, I’m not super sure”.

Draco almost combusted in his seat.

“I told the guy in the shop I needed something to increase libido, or make someone more attractive. I wanted something to make Draco a snack that no one could refuse. He told me the stuff I needed was this weird Italian potion that makes anyone’s feelings towards the drinker heightened, more intense. But only like, sexual feelings. Now, with all my Italian teachings, I’ve never heard of this. _Eterno Desiderio,_ ” Blaise concluded, tilting his head as he gave the pronunciation. Draco took a sharp intake of breath, and Ginny flicked her eyes over to watch him.

“Eternal Desire. I’ve never heard of it. You gave me a fucking backdoor potion that you knew nothing about? Are you hoping to kill me?” Draco grumbled, feeling a fiery spark of rage ignite within him. He began meticulously building up his Occlumency walls, refusing to look at anyone around him. It would only inspire him to falter in his building, and he needed to contain these feelings. “Theo… did you know about this?” He asked his closest confidant. He trusted Theo more than he would ever trust Blaise, so it stung to think he might have known about this.

But Theo denied it. “I didn’t have any idea, mate. You know I would have told you if I knew. This feels a bit reckless, even for you Blaise. Seriously, you know literally nothing about this potion,” Theo added, eyeing the man across from him. Blaise rolled his eyes.

“It wasn’t anymore reckless than anything else I’ve ever done. First of all, I’ve bought from this guy before, don’t ask, I won’t tell you what I bought. Next I took all the precautions, I cast a spell to list all the included ingredients, and when there were a handful I didn’t recognize, I put a bit on my tongue to see if it would have any adverse side effects. Evidently, it did not. And I don’t know ‘nothing’, I’ve just never seen this particular potion before. I know what it was intended to do, and I know that it lasts 12 hours. I knew it would make him smell like cherries and honey. And I knew it would get Draco some god damn action. He’s painfully insufferable to be around right now, so he needed to loosen up. The war is over mate, it’s time to take a breath,” Blaise uttered, drifting off at the end, and if Draco hadn’t obsessively been building his walls throughout the entire conversation, he might have just snapped. Even still, Ginny gasped and Theo sat up straighter, waiting for the inevitable blowout. Draco took a breath. He needed to remain calm. They were in public.

“Blaise. I do not need to loosen up. The war was largely my fault. Our Headmaster is dead because of me, people I’ve gone to school with since I was a child are dead because of me, Fred is dead because of me,” Draco said much too calmly, and Ginny cringed. Draco finally turned to look at her. “Bet you’re regretting last night now, hm? When the gravity of the situation hits and you see you got on your knees for a Death Eater, you are going to wish you could erase that memory. That’s what the potion does, Blaise. It made people, including myself, forget their sanity, forget their _place_ , and it could have caused a lot of fucking damage, Blaise. I do not need to loosen up about the war, because it was my fault in the first place. I don’t care if you feel as though you can be laxer, because you were barely there, but I can assure you, I was there. Every step of the way. And I was a coward, a selfish, terrified coward, because I didn’t want to die, and I didn’t want my mother to die. She was the one person who loved me, the last person on this planet who will ever love me. And no matter how desperately I tried to help in the end, it was too little too late. That’s just the way it is. And that is the way it will always be. I will always be a criminal, and assaulting Ginevra is only adding to my list of crimes. And for your information, Blaise, the potion isn’t worn off. It’s been 12 hours, and the potion is still kicking. So, I’d double check your sources on that one,” Draco said, still as calm as when he started. Ginny had tears rolling down her cheeks, silently, and Blaise looked so shaken up he was evidently pale, despite his dark skin. Theo kept his head down, not wishing to interrupt Draco’s monologue.

“Draco,” Ginny began softly, her crying still not ceased. “I don’t blame you for Fred’s death. That wasn’t your fault”.

Draco scoffed. “If we really look back on it all, the entire war was my fault. So, in turn, that makes Fred’s death my fault too. But thanks for that Gryffindor forgiveness, Ginny, it’s nice to know that there are people out there trying to make a difference”.

“What do you mean, it’s not worn off? The guy told me 12 hours and it’s been,” Blaise checked his watch, “14 hours”.

“I mean it’s still there. Or, as Ginny described it, it’s lingering. More faint than before, but still hanging on. I’d imagine you can still smell it, can’t you?” Draco directed that Ginny, and she nodded without meeting his eyes.

“Cherries and honey,” she said so quietly, that anyone not directly beside her would not hear. Blaise visibly gulped, eyes widening.

“Draco, mate, I-“ but Draco cut him off with a flourish.

“Don’t. I don’t want whatever sympathy you have to offer. I’m going to go and try to track someone down with more knowledge of this potion. Perhaps there is something in the library I can utilize. I’d imagine the restricted section will offer me something in kind,” Draco nodded at his fellow students with a nod, rising out of his seat. Ginny looked as though she wanted to reach out and grab his hand, offer him _some_ sort of consoling, but Draco was quick out of his seat and leaving the Hall, book tucked neatly under his arm.  
He didn’t truly intend to go hunt someone down to help him, not unless it was absolutely necessary. The first priority would be the library. There was likely going to be a book to explain exactly what he needed, because if it was available as easily as Blaise acquired it, then it wasn’t obscure to have never been documented. The restricted section would offer him something, he was sure of it.

Making his way to the library was a task in and of itself, however. Draco didn’t imagine that it would be a difficult trek, but despite the lightened effects of the potion, girls still tried to stop him and talk to him. They made an effort to try and speak to him by grabbing his arms, which was incredibly frustrating, making what should have been a ten-minute walk into a 25-minute walk. By the time Draco entered the library, which was mercifully quiet, he had been groped more times than he wished to acknowledge. The effects were softer, girls weren’t literally tossing themselves on him like they had last night, but they certainly still had an interest. Did he need help carrying his stuff, did he want to go to Hogsmeade later, did he want to grab dinner together, did he want help studying… it was endless. And he tried to be as polite as possible to every girl, but Merlin save him, it was difficult. He wanted to snap at them all, but Draco was trying to turn over a new leaf and not be a total dick to everyone.

Once finally tucked into the doors of the library, Draco made his way to the back of the shelves to the restricted section. It had been made accessible to 8th year students, but a spell over the entry gate still made a log of who took what books out. He didn’t intend to leave with any of the books he found, because he didn’t want to raise any suspicion regarding the kind of content he made off with.

Pulling his wand out of his pocket, Draco closed his eyes and centered his mind, pushing the strange events of the last day away from him.

“Ostende mihi _Eterno Desiderio_ ,” Draco uttered into the void, hoping to call any books with a direct mention of the potion towards him. He expected to have at least 3 books come floating towards him, but he found it incredibly disheartening to see only one book come off the shelves, from deep near the back. As it approached him, Draco was shocked to find it completely wrapped in dust and disgusting. Most books in the restricted section got a least a little bit of usage throughout the years, but this thing appeared to have not been touched in hundreds of years.

“Tergeo,” Draco whispered to it, and watched as the dirt disappeared into the air and revealed a soft black velvet cover. Etched on the front was a mess of Italian words, and Draco sighed. Of course, it would be in Italian, the spell was Italian. Draco was suddenly incredibly grateful for his mother insisting he learn a total of six languages, because he would be facing a massive roadblock if so. Clearing his mind of any thoughts in English, Draco homed in on the Italian part of his learning and opened his eyes again.

The cover read “The Art of Italian Dark Potion Making”, which already had Draco’s heart sinking to his feet. 

The ‘Dark’ implied a path Draco had little interest in going back down. When he flipped to the table of contents, Draco realized the pages were crusty, sticking together. 

_Blood_ , he thought to himself and visibly shuttered. This was an ancient book, and it had clearly been used in some less than pure experiments. He found the words he was looking for, and flipped to the page it suggested. Noting the dark and boldened words across the top, _Eterno Desiderio,_ Draco continued reading onwards.

The potion had been developed back in the era of Emmanuel Philibert, Duke of Savoy, in an attempt to get him to produce an heir. Apparently, women were not chomping at the bit to get into bed with him, so it was difficult to find someone who was willing to spend the rest of their life with him. So, an ancient wizard had concocted the potion for him, in the hopes that he would find a woman to produce an heir with him. It hadn’t worked the way he had wanted however, as the potion required there to be feelings present in the first place. Thus, the Duke remained unwed and without and heir. In the end, the line fell to his brother, in an attempt to secure the Philibert name. 

Draco skimmed through the rest of the page, hoping to skip over the rather boring history lesson. On the next page listed the ingredients, and brewing instructions. Draco’s eyebrows lifted on his face. No wonder he’d never heard of this potion before. The ingredients were incredibly rare, every single one of them, and the brewing method took months of meticulous monitoring. You couldn’t just leave the potion unattended. It was temperamental, and one wrong stir could send the whole thing out the window, forcing the brewer to begin from the beginning. Luckily, once the batch was completed successfully, it could be stored for as long as needed, and wouldn’t expire over time. 

Whatever Blaise paid for the potion, Draco was sure that it was not enough. This was a top tier potion, and regarded an advanced knowledge of the art. No, not advanced, _perfect_. Potion-making was an art, and this was the Mona Lisa. 

Reading onwards, Draco found the effects page. This was what he really wanted. The Italian he spoke was coming back to him almost fully now, and it became an easy read. 

Draco felt his heart almost literally plummet to his feet. The words were being read, but the comprehension became less and less. This wasn’t some run of the mill, 24-hour lust potion. This was gene altering. This potion… _changed_ a person. 

Permanently.

The potion was not designed to wear off in 12 hours, but complete the transition in 12 hours. Whatever extreme reaction the girls were having last night, it was now a permanent thing. Albeit less ridiculous, but this effect he was having on others wasn’t going away. This was who he was now.

Blaise was a dead man walking.

He read on to discover that it was mostly related to proximity and his eyes. Being so close to someone would cause them to smell the cherries and honey (that apparently was impossible to cover up, no matter how much he scrubbed his skin and or layered on cologne) and create that tumultuous effect on their feelings, and looking him in the eye did the same thing. 

So, Draco’s only option was to keep far away from women and not look them in the eye. Easier said than done. He was surrounded by witch’s day in and day out. He couldn’t escape them.

He figured now would be the time to involve someone of authority, but Draco couldn’t think of one person he trusted to be honest and help him, rather than throw him straight into Azkaban. His situation was sticky, and he felt his trusted Occlumency resolve begin to crumble. Slamming his head backwards into a shelf, Draco welcomed the sharp bite of pain. It grounded him. This part of the library was dead, as almost no one ever came back here, so he was able to let out a groan of frustration.

But just his luck, it appeared that he wasn’t the only one in the Restricted Section.

“Draco? Are you quite alright?” Came a soft and ethereal voice form beside him. He opened his eyes, and saw white blonde hair, not unlike his own, cascading down black and blue robe covered shoulders.

“Luna”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh my god i'm sorry this took so long. I just moved cities and jobs and my life has been hectic. But I promise the next one won't take a century lol. xx


	5. Meet Me in the Hallway

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 𝑴𝒆𝒆𝒕 𝑴𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑯𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒘𝒂𝒚 - 𝑯𝒂𝒓𝒓𝒚 𝑺𝒕𝒚𝒍𝒆𝒔  
> We don't talk about it  
> It's something we don't do  
> 'Cause once you go without it  
> Nothing else will do

“Luna,” Draco said, sitting upright once more. He tried to appear as though he wasn’t completely deflated in his emotions, but Luna tended to see more than what others could. She was incredibly gifted like that.

“You seem a bit fuzzy, Draco. Lots of Wrackspurts around your head. What’s got you all tied up in knots?” She asked him calmly, swaying a bit on her toes. Draco sighed, and slouched again. No getting anything past Luna. And these apparent Wrackspurts. Luna sunk down beside him, and sat cross-legged, eyeing him with no malice, purely consideration and perhaps mild concern.

Draco hadn’t spoken to Luna for quite a long time, and the last time he’d seen her was at his trial. Luna was the second of the three to vouch for him, and Draco had already been shaken up by the appearance Harry and being informed that Hermione would be coming in the evening that very day. Luna came as a complete shock, and he’d had no idea she’d even volunteered to speak for him. She had glided in, dressed in a shimmery yellow dress and purple boots, her signature pink glasses propped on her head. She hadn’t appeared the least bit concerned for being in a very dark, very scary court room, with hundreds of eyes on her chair. Luna had merely smiled and answered the preliminary questions with ease.

_“Now, Miss Lovegood, you are here today to speak on behalf of one Draco Lucius Malfoy, is that correct?” A Wizengamot member had asked her plainly, and the man glanced nervously to where Draco was seated off to the left, chains holding his hands close together. He was barely breathing, staring straight at Luna with an awestruck look on his face._

_“That’s right,” she answered simply, crossing and uncrossing her ankles a few times before settling on stacking one on top of the other._

_“When was your interaction with Draco during the war?”_

_“Well, some Snatchers had taken me to Malfoy Manner in the hopes that my father would give up Harry, Hermione and Ron. They assumed that the three would stop by my home eventually, given my father’s understanding of the Deathly Hallows. So, I stayed in a dungeon beneath Malfoy Manner for some time. I was there with Mr. Olivander and Griphook”._

_“I see. And Draco, did he attempt to help you break out at any time?” Luna laughed at this, and the other Wizengamot members looked at each other warily._

_“Of course not, silly. That would have led to us all being killed. Draco is smarter than that, and honestly, I think Draco is often the smartest person in the room. He certainly is right now,” she said softly, finally turning to look at him and give him a small smile. Draco could do no more than stare blankly back at her, unsure of how even to respond to that comment. Him and Luna had barely crossed paths, barely spoken at Hogwarts, and here she was claiming he was the smartest person in the room. It was a bit unnerving, if Draco was honest._

_The Wizengamot murmured amongst themselves, unsure if they should take offence to Luna’s comment, but ultimately, they decided to ignore it._

_“Alright. Well, if he did not attempt to set you free, what was it that made Draco was valuable to you during your time in Malfoy Manor?”_

_“He brought us food, and water, and one night, when I had mentioned how dreadfully cold it was downstairs, he brought us blankets. He came and collected the blankets every morning, so we didn’t get caught with them, and brought them back every night. It was quite kind of him. He also made sure to keep us up to date on all the happenings regarding the war and what was going on above us. He never left us in the dark. Draco did more than just help us, he kept us safe. At a great danger to himself, I’d imagine,” Luna concluded, still not being swayed by the foreboding body of wizards in front of her. She didn’t seem to be terribly torn up about relaying details from the war, but Draco knew how easy it was to hide pain and suffering. She may have barely been touched or even spoken to during her time at Malfoy Manor, but it had to be chilling nonetheless, wondering if today would be your last day alive._

_Draco knew that feeling._

_“And Draco, how did you manage to sneak downstairs every night to deliver such valuable goods?” The Wizengamot inquired, looking at him with moderate disdain and trepidation. Draco cleared his throat, dry and hoarse for not having spoken in many hours._

_“I, uh, I told everyone upstairs that I was using Legilimency to try and gather information regarding what the others knew. I thought it would make it seem as though I was helping, even though I wasn’t doing much of anything,” Draco clarified, not making eye contact with anyone._

_A gasp went through the Wizengamot, and an older woman called out, “I thought you were an Occlumens?”._

_“I am,” Draco replied. “I’m both. Though my Occlumency is better, that comes naturally. I was taught Legilimency”._

_“And who taught you this skill?”_

_“Severus Snape”. The audience quieted at that. Most opinions were relatively divided on that front. Some saw Snape as a hero, who prevented an early arrival of Voldemort and saved many lives. Others saw him as a traitor, a murderer, a dark wizard who deserved to be exactly where he is now._

_6 feet under._

_“And what sort of information was gathered from using this Legilimency?” someone else asked. Draco finally looked up, meeting only Luna’s eyes, hoping to find some sort of comfort there. She smiled and gave him a small nod for him to continue._

_“Only things Luna allowed me to see. I told her to give me useless information, things that the Snatchers or Voldemort himself already knew. And I threw in a few lies here and there to try and misdirect them. Nothing given to the Death Eaters was anything Luna didn’t fully agree to give forth,” Draco finished, and returned his eyes to the floor._

_“And Miss Lovegood? Is this true?”_

_“Of course, it is. Draco wouldn’t lie with me here to refute it. Smartest person, remember?” Luna said with a wave of her hand. “In any case, he likely saved my life, as well as Mr. Olivander and Griphook. It’s all thanks to him being kind with his treatment of us. I owe him. He may have fallen to the wrong side of the war, but he has a good heart. And a good head. Draco deflected a long time ago, but he was wise enough to know that running away would have killed not only himself, but his family too. He did everything he could in his position. And I think that should be rewarded,” Luna concluded, and smiled wistfully. The Wizengamot clarified a few small details for their transcripts, and then she was dismissed. Standing effortlessly and almost floating from the room, Luna looked back to Draco once more before she left, giving him a beaming smile before disappearing in a flurry out the door._

Sitting beside her now, Draco didn’t feel any nervousness or contempt come from her. She was comfortable being so close to him, and he was grateful that she wasn’t afraid. If he had sensed fear in her, then it would have crushed the feeling of trust he’d placed in her after the trial. But she didn’t appear to be nervous.

“I’m facing a bit of a potions problem right now,” Draco informed her, not wanting to dive headfirst into all the information. She nodded once, and placed her hands in her lap.

“Yes, Ginny told me. Rather risky to do such a thing in the hallway, the Nargles might catch you and take off with your discarded clothing, but I’m glad you made it out fully dressed,” Luna said wistfully, smiling softly at him. Draco felt a blush creep up his cheeks. She knew?

“Ginny told you? How many others did she tell?” Draco asked with a groan, slamming his head back into the bookcase. Luna laughed softly into her hand.

“Don’t worry, she only told Hermione and I. Oh, that reminds me! Hermione was looking for you earlier. She wanted to speak with you after Ginny, but you disappeared rather abruptly,” she said, and Draco’s eyes almost bulged out of his head.

“She’s looking for me? Oh Merlin, that can’t be a good sign. Please don’t tell her where I am. I’ll talk to her… later. Another time. I don’t think I can handle her anger right now,” Draco spoke lowly, not opening his eyes. She was probably mad that he had let her act like such a fool last night. Hopefully, when he did run into her, she’d allow him to explain before she hexed the skin off his back.

“Oh, I won’t tell her, if you don’t want me to. But she isn’t angry. Not even a little. I think she was more curious. You know Hermione. She sees a new problem; she must come up with a solution. If it wasn’t for her extreme bravery, I’d imagine she’d make a very nice Ravenclaw,” Luna pondered, swirling her hands in the air as she said it. Once her mind came back down to earth, she smiled at Draco again (he’d by now popped one eye open to watch her). “Can I see what you’re reading? Perhaps a fresh set of eyes could help you out?” She offered, and Draco reluctantly handed the book off to Luna. He felt wrong handing such a dark object to her, but she didn’t seem to be phased by the obviously blood splattered pages.

“It’s in Italian,” he murmured, flipping the pages in her lap to the one she needed. She waved his comment off.

“I speak it. I speak 26 languages, in fact,” she countered, and Draco’s jaw hit the floor.

“26 languages? Luna, that’s… incredible. How in the world…?” Draco began, but she merely smiled down at the book as she smoothed out the wrinkles.

“I guess I just found myself over time being really inclined to have the ability to speak to everyone. I’d meet someone, they’d speak a language I didn’t know, so I’d learn it. So on and so forth. It becomes easier to learn a new one every time. There is a lot of crossover, you’d be surprised,” she said dreamily, not really paying much attention to the conversation and showing more interest in the book. “I _am_ in Ravenclaw. I know many people see me as silly and perhaps a bit insane, but I am rather smart”. Luna began to read the text before her, skimming lightly and pausing only to read a few passages more intently. Finally, she lifted her head. “Well, quite the bind you’re in,” she remarked, which made Draco roll his eyes.

“Yes, thank you Luna, I’m aware”. She laughed at his response.

“Well, it isn’t all bad. I can’t speak for everyone, but I’d say the effects are quite subdued. I can still smell it, the potion, but it’s rather faint. And I certainly don’t feel any overwhelming desire to leap into your lap right now,” Luna said matter-of-factly, and Draco blanched a bit at her words.

“You… you too, Luna? I didn’t think…,” Draco did not know how to phrase this appropriately. “I didn’t think you were interested in me, like that. At all,” Draco said, not lifting his eyes from the page before him.

Luna gave him a sideways glance, looking a bit incredulous. “I’ve always found you attractive, Draco. You’re handsome, in a sharp sort of way. Like really cold ice. It’s… nice,” she said, no shame in her words.

“Like ice. Okay,” Draco replied, a bit confused. Luna clucked her tongue.

“Don’t be silly, Draco. It’s a compliment. Some might find it frightening, but I find it rather endearing. Plus, I think the Nargles are fond of you. They never take your things and they’re pretty quiet when you’re around,” she said, as if Draco even knew what a Nargle was.

“Maybe they’re frightened of me too,” he mumbled. She shrugged.

“Maybe”. That response didn’t make Draco feel any better, but he had to admire her honesty. She didn’t skirt around the truth, and she was clear in her intentions. That was an admirable trait, one that many would find themselves lacking in. “Now, right here. It says that the effects, after the initial night, are to be quite subdued, but in order to lower them to an almost completely tolerable level, an act of sexual nature should do the trick. The more intense, the longer it lasts. That’s an interesting point. Every time you interact with someone physically, it lowers the desires of others for some time. I’d imagine they put that in there so that when the drinker found a more permanent partner, they wouldn’t have women falling all over them. Makes sense to me. That’s an interesting element, one that would require a lot of Phoenix tears and perhaps a sprig of…” Luna was gone again, off in her own world of thought. She seemed to be quite fascinated by the intricacies of the potion. 

Draco himself, was lost in thought. How long would the subduing last? Hours? Days? Weeks? Probably not his luck to ask for such an extended period of time, but he certainly wasn’t above praying to whatever gods floated above them. He really didn’t want to have to shag someone every bloody day in order to not have every other witch falling over him. Draco enjoyed sex as much as the next guy, but he imagined it would lose its appeal after a while of that.

“Draco? Draco, are you even listening to me?” Luna was asking, waving her hands in front of him. He blinked back in surprise and had the decency to look like he’d been caught doing something naughty.

“Sorry Luna, I’m a bit spacey. This is all a very new dilemma for me. I… I don’t want to get sent to Azkaban for this. And frankly, it does feel like a bit of a violation of my probation. _Do no harm to others, in any form_? This feels like I’m doing a mass number of people harm”.

Luna gave him a look of sympathy, but it was small and fleeting. “I don’t think you’re doing anyone harm, Draco. It’s sex. You’d be doing them a service. Anyone acting as they are, are only doing so because they had an interest in the first place. Ginny felt bad the next morning for being so forceful on _you_. Not the other way around. She isn’t upset about what happened, and she enjoyed it. Maybe a bit ashamed of the rather public display she put on, but not because of you. This isn’t the end of the world, Draco. Truly. We’ll figure it out. I’ll help you. Hermione wants to help you. I’m sure your friend Theo would want to help you. Ginny will help you. There are people who are here for you. I know you may feel alone after the war, but I promise, there are people who know you’ve changed, that you’re better. Good people know this. It’s going to be okay,” Luna finished off with, and Draco smiled at her. He was grateful she had deigned to speak with him about this. Despite what everyone said, Luna had a good head on her shoulders, and she was wise beyond her years. “Now, as I was saying, I would like to try and see how long the effects of physical touch last. Perhaps we could try and build a timeline of how long certain things hold off people. That way, everyone who is helping you can have a bit of a better understanding of things,” Luna said brightly, closing the book in her lap and placing it off to the side. Draco gulped, and stared at Luna all wide-eyed. 

“You want to have sex? With me?” He asked, and she shrugged as if it they were merely discussing going for a quick spot of tea.

“Maybe not sex. This is a bit of a risky spot for that, even if it is the restricted section. We can try some stuff out, make note of it, and start a list. We certainly have a long list of people who are willing to try anything with you now,” Luna said, giving him a knowing glance out the corner of her eye. Draco groaned, and pinched the bridge of his nose. He was well aware of how many volunteers her had. Luna seemed to take this groan as an affront to her. “If you don’t want to do anything with me, that’s quite alright, I can go and find Ginny…” she said, beginning to stand up. Draco grabbed her arm, pulling her back down to sitting.

“No! No, it isn’t that, it’s not you, it’s…,” Draco started but he found himself unsure of how to respond. It wasn’t that it was Luna Lovegood. He had no issues with it being her. Draco hadn’t paid a large sum of time admiring her, but it had certainly crossed his mind once or twice. Luna was pretty, in the way you’d consider a siren or a fairy pretty. They were ethereal, always appearing as though sunshine was touching them, even in a windowless room. She seemed unattainable, like the thought of laying with anyone was beneath her. While Draco too had once thought Luna to be a little insane, he thought it was a breath of fresh air to listen to her speak. Her voice was like a tiny wind chime, floating on a breeze, beckoning you home. She was always so painfully kind, no matter what anyone said or did to her. She took everything in stride, never letting things bother her, at least on a surface level. That was what held Draco back. Luna was a _good person_. Draco was not. He felt like laying a single hand on her would tarnish her, and Luna was not someone to be tarnished. She was bright and beautiful and deserved only very good things. Draco was a dark cloud, just waiting to spill over with acid rain. She deserved a lot better than… than this.

Luna could clearly see the turmoil going on in Draco’s head, and she sighed with an eye roll, turning herself so she could straddle him. Draco’s knees were forced to lower, and his hands instinctively caught her hips. His eyes were so wide, Luna thought they might just tumble from his head. “Don’t feel guilty, Draco. I’m not a delicate flower. It’s alright,” she said, and leaned downwards. Her hands cupped his cheeks, and she very tentatively pressed her lips to his.

Perhaps not a delicate flower, but a gentle one at least. Luna was slow and careful in her ministrations. Draco let his fingers flex on her hips and let her take complete control over the situation. If they were going to do this, Draco was going to ensure that she was in charge. However much Draco enjoyed being the boss in these situations, his new and strange friendship with Luna was more important.

Luna pressed a little harder, becoming firmer in her desires. Her hands slipped to Draco’s neck and chest, and she tilted her head to nibble on the outer shell of his ear. Oh, _oh_ , that was a soft spot for Draco. Who knew his ears could be such an erogenous zone, but sure enough, that was in his top five.

While she continued to kiss and lick his ear, Draco pulled his wand out to cast a disillusionment charm, and silencing one on top, just in case. He doubted anyone would be this deep in the library on the weekend, but better safe than sorry.

Draco moved his hands to push Luna’s Ravenclaw robes off her shoulders. She wasn’t in dress code underneath, sporting a soft pink overall dress with a red turtleneck underneath, so it was strange that she had chosen to wear her Ravenclaw cloak on top. Although, it could be fair to say that anything Luna did was rather odd. 

Coaxing her face back up to his, Draco kissed Luna with as much tenderness as he could muster, not wishing to frighten her with the same treatment he gave Ginny last night. That was a completely different kind of erotic experience, and unlikely to be one that Luna wanted to engage in. She was softer around the edges. Where Ginny was a fire, Luna was a breeze, and too much of anything would send her running away. Draco was enjoying himself, in any case. It wasn’t often that he was given the chance to be gentle with someone. Those that wanted to sleep with Draco often assumed he was a rather dominating creature in bed, and while they weren’t wrong, it was nice to slow the pace down for once.

Luna leaned back; a bit flushed but a smile on her face. “I know I said that we shouldn’t just have sex, but I…,” she started, looking a tad bit unsure of her words. That was a first.

“You don’t want to just make out on the library floor like a bunch of Fourth Years,” Draco finished for her, tilting her head to look him in the eye. She giggled, and Draco smiled. That was good sign. She was okay.

“Yeah, I guess that’s one way to put it”. He brushed a tendril of her wayward blonde hair behind her ear, and admired her rosy lips and flushed cheeks. Luna _was_ very pretty.

He gestured to their laps. “May I?” He asked, wanting to be completely sure before anything transpired. She nodded once, but looked a bit shocked when Draco turned them so that he could lay down, pulling her closer to his face. Luna squeaked, and looked a bit shocked. “Are you alright?” He said, gently pulling up the hem of her overall dress. She was wearing light blue underwear with bright green trim, completely demure yet a little strange, and it just seemed so _Luna_ that Draco almost laughed.

Almost.

“Yes, yes, I am, it’s just, no one has ever done _that_ in _this_ position before,” she said a bit sheepishly, tugging at the sleeves of her shirt. She looked shy, but not because she was unsure of the act. Rather, that she was about to be seen from that angle. Draco smiled up at her, grazing a hand gentle over the light blue cotton. Goosebumps immediately broke out over Luna’s skin, and she sighed a bit.

“Don’t worry. It’s good, I promise. Stop me at any time if you’re uncomfortable,” he said, before directing her to stand above him. He sat up so he could pull her underwear down, lifting her feet one by one to pull them off completely. He whispered a small _come here_ , pulling her to step closer to him. She did so, looking nervous, but also excited. Draco ran his hands up her pale legs, stopping to lean in and kiss the inside of each of her calves, her knees, her thighs. Luna was shaking by the time his hands reached the hem of her dress. He pulled it up slowly, and made sure to keep looking Luna in the eye, so as not to freak her out by looking where she was obviously nervous for him to be. He kept one hand on her thigh, while letting the other trail between her legs. She let out a small gasp when his fingers reached exactly where they were intending to go, not surprised to find her wet already.

“It’s okay Luna. You’re beautiful. Absolutely stunning,” he said to reassure her, letting his fingers brush delicately against her most sensitive areas. She stuttered a bit above him, but otherwise looked relaxed and thoroughly turned on. 

After a few moments of listening to her whimper above him, leaving little hickeys inside her thighs, Draco tentatively pushed a finger inside of her. He didn’t know anything about Luna Lovegood’s sex life, and he wasn’t about to assume anything. But she gave only a small flinch, before a real moan escaped her lips. She slammed her hands over her mouth, but Draco quickly shook his head.

“No, no, I want to hear you. You sound ethereal, Luna. I want to hear it, please,” he spoke softly to her, never stopping the slow in and out of his finger. She nodded once, before lowering her hand. She continued to let out small groans, eventually grabbing onto Draco’s hair and the bookshelf beside them for balance, before he slipped in another finger, and her eyes shot open.

“Fuck,” she said outrightly, and Draco’s eyebrows shot up, a smirk on his face.

“Naughty words, Luna,” he said, leaning back in to kiss another spot on her thigh. She seemed to enjoy that, and he wasn’t about to deny her anything. Curling his fingers inside her, looking for just that one spot…

_Yes._

Luna cried out, her knees wobbling beside Draco, and she gripped the bookshelf harder. That was what he wanted. No holding back, just her enjoying what he was giving. A few more curls, and another rather aggressive love bite later, and Luna was shaking above him. His fingers slipped out just in time to catch her as she crumbled, and Draco leaned back to let her sit on his chest once again. She was panting, her cheeks a rosy red, and her hair looked even wilder than before. She looked like a wood nymph, and it was doing ridiculous things to Draco’s fantasies.

And his cock.

He pulled Luna forward just as she appeared to be recovering and nudged the apex of her thighs with his nose. Another small whimper escaped her, and she roughly gripped Draco’s hair and the floor with her right and left hand, respectfully. Draco took this a sign to continue, and opened his mouth to lick a broad stripe up her cunt.

Luna looked as though her soul left her body.

She cried out, gripping Draco’s hair harder, but he enjoyed the pain. It let him know she was enjoying herself, and that was Draco’s number one priority.

Draco may have been an absolute monster, and a terrible human, but he was also a very generous lover. It brought him immense joy and arousal to turn someone else on, to make them weak in the knees. It felt like he’d won something, like he was a god. It was really good for his ego. 

Luna continued to whine above him, and he continued to eat her cunt like it was the last mean he’d ever devour. She tasted heavenly, and her cries above him were doing a damn service to his already massive self-confidence in bed.

It was when she leaned back and braced herself on Draco’s thighs, however, that Draco thought he might actually die and go straight to heaven. She began rocking gently against his face, eyes screwed shut and cries becoming more verbal. 

There was a lot of swearing coming from someone who Draco was pretty sure he’d never heard swear in their life.

He wrapped his arms around her thighs, keeping her close to him but still allowing her to control the pace. Draco _wanted_ Luna to take control like this. He wanted her to grab her pleasure, and ride his face in the Hogwarts library like it was the only thing in the world that mattered. _Take what you want, Luna, take what you need. Come for me_ , Draco thought in his mind, his mouth otherwise busy. And take she did. 

Luna rode him hard, chasing after her own release as Draco let himself be moderately used. It was erotic, to be doing such a filthy act in the library, but it only emboldened Draco more. He was loving every god damn minute of this, and he wasn’t about to let her come off of this without coming again. Draco could tell she was close. At this point, she was merely speaking gibberish, incoherent words of nonsense, eyes transfixed on Draco. Whatever shyness she had felt before was gone, and she was taking everything he was giving to her.

A few more rocks and Draco felt the telltale signs of her release coming. Her thighs tightened around his head, quivered and shook. Her hands tightened, and her cheeks flushed.

“Draco, I think I’m going-,” she began, but it was cut off when Draco sucked rather intensely on her clit, sending her head flying backwards and her thighs absolutely vibrating. She cried out his name, and stopped rocking, letting him coax her through her orgasm. He didn’t stop until he thought she might actually pass away from oversensitivity. Only then did he lift her up from where she sat perched, easing her downwards so he could hold her properly whilst sitting up. She squeaked and ducked her head into his neck once they were close. He laughed, wrapping his arms around her.

“Are you alright?” He asked her, and she leaned back to look at him, a bit stunned.

“Am I alright? Are YOU alright? I just simply, used you, and I was… riding your face, oh my gods!” She shrieked, ducking her head back into his neck. He ran his hands up and down her back.

“Oh, for Salazar’s sake, Luna, that was incredible. Don’t be ashamed because you were mostly in control. It was really hot, and I’m very satisfied,” he said gently, not wanting her to regret anything. She leaned back slowly, looking him in the eyes again. When she shifted in his lap, and Draco involuntarily groaned. She looked surprised and froze.

“Oh goodness, I should do something about that! Here, let me…,” she began to reach between them, but Draco stopped her hands.

“No. If we’re going to figure out what sorts of things work for what amount of time; we can’t check everything off the list at once. I’ll be fine, a good wank in the shower later will do the trick,” Draco said honestly, and Luna laughed into her hands. 

“Okay. I guess you’re right. Are you sure you’re okay?” She asked again, and he nodded.

“Never better. Come on, let’s get out of here before my spells wear off and someone hears you swearing like a banshee,” he said, and she swatted his arm as he laughed. Once they were both upright, dressed, and thoroughly Scourgified, Luna and Draco slipped out of the restricted section. As they made their way to the doors leading to the hall, Luna began rambling about what she thought was the best course of action.

“So, I think it would be prudent to have a parchment to keep track of what you did, who with and then to later mark down how long it was before people started losing their marbles again. I think I can focus on tracking down more information, seeing as I speak Italian too, so I’ll be able to read anything that comes our way. I also think once we know a bit more, Hermione is the right person to try and hunt down a reversal, given that she’s literally brilliant, and I know it would make her immensely happy to do that. And Theo can be there to help you fend off the psychopaths; there is bound to be a few,” she said, listing off the never-ending thoughts in her brain. Draco was listening, partly, but he was also keeping an eye on the various students in the library’s front half. Once they stepped into the hallway, Draco was prepared to be bombarded by girls, but instead of reaching out to him or trying to stop him, any that he saw merely smiled and returned to their previous tasks.

“Luna,” Draco said softly. She stopped mid-sentence to look at him.

“What?”

“It worked,” he replied, keeping quiet so as not to let anyone overhear. Luna, too, looked around to see the women of Hogwarts merely minding their own business, not attempting to fling themselves in Draco’s path. 

“Oh, my gods…,” she said. She quickly squeezed his hand, before dropping it. They stopped at the top of the stairs, him intending to go down to Slytherin and her onto another staircase to Ravenclaw. “We can do this Draco. We’re going to figure it out. You have people on your team now. This doesn’t have to be the end of the world,” she said, and quickly leaned up to peck his cheek, before skipping down the moving staircase to her own common room.

Draco felt warmer than he had in months, maybe even years. Luna was right. He had people in his corner.

Perhaps everything was going to be alright.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I TOLD U IT WOULDN'T TAKE 500 YEARS LOL. okay I wanted him to be gentle with luna. she deserves to ride draco malfoy's face. she deserves good things.


	6. Stay

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 𝑺𝒕𝒂𝒚 - 𝒁𝒆𝒅𝒅 & 𝑨𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒂 𝑪𝒂𝒓𝒂  
> Won't admit what I already know  
> I've never been the best at letting go  
> I don't wanna spend the night alone  
> Guess I need you, and I need to

The drop downwards to the Slytherin common room was peaceful, and Draco felt more uplifted than he had in some time. He didn’t want the feeling to evade him, and he hoped that his tryst with Luna gave him the opportunity to stay safe from the advances of others for a least the rest of the day. He didn’t want to put too much stock into it, since they hadn’t actually had sex, but perhaps it was enough to carry him through the day. 

Once giving the obnoxious portrait the password, Draco was able to slip in and make himself comfortable on one of the large velvet couches. Blaise and Theo were sitting on the floor around a small table, playing some card game, and Pansy was neatly braiding Daphne’s hair from another chair. A couple of younger students were gathered about, but they seemed pretty uninterested in anything the older students were doing.

Blaise was the first to look up and acknowledge him. We seemed nervous, rightly so, but Draco was feeling too good to begin this conversation with yelling.

“Draco… you seem to be in a good mood,” Blaise said tentatively, eyeing him with suspicion. Theo looked up too, noting his arrival. Pansy raised one eyebrow, eyeing him for a moment but returned to her ministrations on Daphne.

“I am,” he said matter-of-factly. Theo let a small smile flit across his face. He placed his cards on the table, clearly more interested in whatever Draco had to say.

“So, I’m guessing your research was rather good,” he said, giving a small glance at Pansy and Daphne, noting their lack of interest in Draco. Whatever he’d done, suffice to say it had worked.

“Well, I come bearing news. Not sure if it’s good or bad,” Draco said, kicking his feet up onto the couch, leaning his neck on the arm rest. “But it’s more knowledge than we had before”.

“Alright, out with it. It seems like whatever you did, worked,” Theo said, gesturing with his thumb to Pansy and Daphne. Draco nodded once.

“I found a book. One singular book, which was upsetting that that’s all there was, but it was pretty informative. I’m hoping to be able to slip home for a few days and snag a few from the library. Maybe there might be more there. But anyways. The title of the book was _The Art of Italian Dark Potion Making_ , which in and of itself is a bit frightening, but nonetheless, here we are”. Draco went on to explain what he had discovered; the permanence, the intense brewing instructions, how Draco was sure Blaise did not pay what the actual cost of this potion was, and how to ‘alleviate’ symptoms. He left out any of the more intimate details of what he had done with Luna. Theo had his brows raised higher and higher as the conversation went on, and Blaise sunk even lower into the floor. He was clearly way too upset with himself to even be happy Draco had found information, not realizing what he had done to his friend. The permanence… Blaise was ashamed. And the guilt was beginning to creep up on him.

“So, uh, yeah. That’s the general overview of it. I want to know more, and Luna has made herself available to help read any translations. Did you know she speaks 26 languages? That’s just fucking absurd,” Draco said, and he closed his eyes. He was still feeling alright, even after relaying the rather unfortunate news of the potions everlasting effects. He felt better knowing that they had a plan in place, that there were people in his corner.

“Draco, I… I can’t tell you how sorry I am. If I had known… I should have known; I should have tried to figure out what I was giving you _before_ I gave it to you. This is all my fault, mate, I really fucked up. I see that now. Whatever you need… I’m on it. I want to help,” Blaise said, having the decency to look genuinely upset. Draco opened his eyes to peer at Blaise, feeling a small flicker of anger burn in him, but he quickly diminished it.

“I know. You really fucked it up this time. But you’re one of my best mates and I… I’m not going to fault you for this for life. Might never drink anything you give me again, but still,” Draco said with a small laugh. “I want you to check your family’s library too. You’ve got the Italian heritage, so of any of us, you’re most likely to have information on an Italian potion. I want to know every bit of knowledge I can on this. If we’re to create an antidote, we need to know everything. We can’t do this blind. Based on the methodology of the brewing, I’d say creating an antidote will be just as grueling”.

Blaise nodded, sitting up a bit more. By this point, the girls were leaning in, listening to the conversation, soaking up all that they could. This was good gossip, in their minds.

Theo eyed Draco with curiosity. “You think you can make an antidote?”.

Draco shrugged. “Worth looking into. I really, really don’t want to live like this”.

“Blaise, you fucking drugged him? Seriously? What is wrong with you?” Pansy asked incredulously. She was angry, on behalf of Draco, that Blaise had the audacity to pull such a stunt.

“Look, Pans, I’ve already been through this yelling with multiple people, I don’t need it from you too. I got it, I fucked up. And I’m trying to make amends here. So just fucking cool it,” he said, glaring at her. Pansy didn’t hide her disdain, however, she backed off. Sitting back in her chair, she crossed her arms. Daphne sat silently, biting at her nails.

“So, I guess it’s fair to ask now that this is all out in the open… Pans, Daph, can you guys… smell him? Like, that sweet nonsense you were spewing last night?” Theo asked, looking directly at them both. Pansy rolled her eyes, but leaned forward nonetheless, staring at Draco. She sniffed a bit, tilted her head, thinking. Daphne rose up, and walked to the couch. She knelt beside Draco and breathed in.

“It’s so… faint. Like, I can barely catch it. More like your usual cologne than anything. And I certainly don’t feel any overwhelming urge to jump your bones,” she said with a shrug, leaning back.

“No more than usual, right Daph?” Draco said, smirking at her. She scoffed and stood to walk back to her seat, but Draco could see the blush on her cheeks.

“I can’t smell anything from over here,” Pansy said, interrupting the moment. She leaned back in her chair, letting Daphne settle between her knees. 

“Well, that’s a really good sign. Perhaps it’s so faint now because you fooled around with Ginny last night,” Theo said, shrugging. Daphne’s eyes nearly bulged out of her head, and Pansy’s jaw hit the floor. Draco flinched, for he knew the absolute verbal lashing he was about to receive. Theo looked between them all and immediately realized his mistake.

“Oh, fuck…”.

“You fucked Ginny Weasley last night? _Seriously_ , Draco? You’re a fucking idiot. Why in the hell would you do that? Do you know the absolute reign of terror she’s going to bring down on us now? She already hates us immensely, you especially, and us by association. You fucking idiot!” Pansy cried, and Draco felt himself sigh. Normally, Pansy would be right. He really fucked shit up, but this time was different. Ginny wasn’t holding any adverse feelings. She understood, and she hadn’t put any blame on Draco.

“Ginny isn’t upset. I spoke with her this morning. She isn’t holding any of this against me. You’re not going to get hexed in the hallway. I promise. It’s all fine. So, don’t look so fucking panicked, Pans. If I’m still alive right now, then obviously she isn’t going to lash out on any of you,” Draco mumbled, still feeling the effects of shame rolling off of him. He wasn’t necessarily upset about the way things panned out with Ginny, or Luna, but he knew that without the potion, he wouldn’t have even got within 5 feet of them. They’d have avoided him like the plague. The past 7 years of his life ensured that. “At any rate, it wasn’t last night. Utilizing… sex, as a way to lower effects, wasn’t supposed to work until after the first night. And this morning… girls were acting strange again. Kept trying to stop me to speak with in the hallway. It was a bit maddening, if I’m honest,” Draco said honestly, staring at the roof where darkness swallowed up the visible ceiling, giving the illusion of never-ending night. Some might have found it eerie, or unsettling in its mystery, but it was comforting to Draco. The darkness had become a bit of a home in the last few years, and the Slytherin common room was full of it.

“Okay… so, why are the symptoms eased up then? Do you think it’s something to do with Pansy or Daphne? Or like, what did you do?” Theo asked, and Draco immediately noticed his _own_ mistake. He lowered his eyes back down to his peers, and noticed them staring at him waiting to hear his answer. Somehow this was going to end up with him admitting what had happened with Luna, and then an entirely new can of worms was going to be spilt on the floor. That was incredibly less than ideal.

Blaise caught on first, he simply knew that exact look from earlier this morning with Ginny. His eyes widened slightly, staring into Draco intensely, as if to suggest _no, you didn’t. With her? Seriously?,_ but he wisely kept his mouth shut. Outing Draco right now would only add to the distrust boiling between the two.

Pansy seemed to fit all the puzzle pieces together first, but the picture was still unclear. “Not what did you do, but whom,” Pansy uttered, giving him a withering glare. She was either pissed that he’d been with someone, angry at the entire situation, or envious that he hadn’t gone to her first. Not that Draco had gone to either Luna or Ginny, but merely agreed to their propositions.

Theo was staring at him expectedly, and Blaise had gone uncharacteristically quiet, sinking lower into his chair. Daphne looked the most confused, as per usual. Draco still didn’t say anything to alleviate the confusion of his friends. Blaise finally rolled his eyes, and waved his hand.

“They’re going to figure it out anyways, mate,” he said, and Draco wanted to be frustrated with him for opening his mouth, but he knew Blaise was right. His friends were clever, and they’d be able to deduce the answer before long.

“I, uh… I might have had an interaction with… Luna, when she came to check on me,” he said sheepishly, and Daphne slapped a hand over her mouth. Pansy rolled her eyes and groaned, and Theo merely tilted his head back and laughed. Loudly.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake, Draco…” Pansy said, and rubbed her temples therapeutically, as if she were the one suffering and not him. 

“It’s not my fault! She offered! She thought we should compile a list of different sex things and time how long it was before the symptoms other girls felt came back. And she was right, but that doesn’t mean I like, asked her or anything. It was her idea, and she asked to. All very civil. And it worked, didn’t it? I just have to keep an eye on the clock. See how long what we did works for,” Draco explained, raising his hands up in a defensive position. He wanted it to be crystal clear that he was trying his very best to rationalize these new and strange interactions, and make sure they really did want to do something of that nature with him. He didn’t want anyone to point fingers and accuse him of assault, so he had tried to be as understanding and attentive as possible, looking for the telltale signs that someone was uninterested. But so far, both girls had seemed willing and eager.

“What… what _did_ you do with her? Weren’t you in the library?” Blaise asked, the hint of his signature smirk appearing. Draco rolled his eyes but felt his cheeks warm at the thoughts that quickly flittered through his mind.

“We didn’t have sex,” was all Draco said, and Blaise howled. Theo looked smug, but wisely kept his mouth shut. 

Pansy was livid. “Well, while you’re off whoring around the entire school, some of us have real work to do. Daphne, gentlemen, _Draco_ ,” she said as a huffy goodbye, ensuring it was notable that Draco was not to be included in the list of gentlemen. She pushed out of her chair and stormed off towards the direction of her room, nearly toppling Daphne over in her attempt to get away. She stomped loudly, her heels clacking obnoxiously on the stone floors in between rugs. Draco looked after her bewildered, and then turned to his friends to try and gauge their reactions. Only Daphne looked anything less than shocked by the outburst, and twiddled her thumbs nervously.

“What in the fuck was that?” Blaise asked, looking around with shock. Draco shrugged, and looked to Theo.

“I haven’t seen her that worked up in a while,” Theo said softly, and scratched the back of his neck in curiosity. All three turned to Daphne, who rolled her eyes.

“How dense can you possibly be? Seriously, you guys are as dumb as a bag of bricks,” she said with a flick of her blonde hair over her shoulder.

“And you are as lovely to be around as always, Daph, but that doesn’t explain why Pansy has her knickers in a twist. Care to elaborate?” Blaise questioned her, and she scowled at him.

“She’s in love with you Draco, and here you are frolicking in the hallways with people who had sworn to be our enemies. She’s always been right there, so eager for you, and you either hide yourself away and don’t even look at girls, or you let the whole group know you’re fucking girls who have never looked at you with anything but disdain and disgust. How do you think she feels? That you’d rather go to Luna Lovegood for sexual help than her. She probably feels pretty fucking horrible, Draco. So don’t act all shocked by her reaction,” Daphne practically shouted at them, and the boys looked completely aghast.

“I didn’t… I didn’t know, she never…” Draco sputtered, but Daphne rolled her eyes and scoffed.

“Oh please. If you’ve never noticed her advancements, or her pining eyes, or her utter desire for you, then you’re pretty fucking stupid. Especially since you claimed to be the smartest one here, o’ great and wise second-in-all-his-classes!” Daphne waved her arms around as she said the last bit, and Draco resisted the urge to yell at her. It wasn’t his fault Pansy had never outrightly expressed her interests. He was a man, oblivious to anything but the straightforward, and the last few years had been a bit of a blur. Daphne was right, he hadn’t looked at other witches or wizards much at all other than his few trysts during the war. But those had been about escape, not affection. Pansy was his friend, and he for sure hadn’t really thought about her much since their tryst from years ago. She hadn’t seemed all that upset with Draco for cutting things off, but to be fair, he had been treating her terribly, with everything that had been going on. And she hadn’t expressed an interest past sexual interactions with Draco, not appearing to be looking for love from him. How was Draco supposed to know otherwise? The walls of Occlumency he had been working on finally shuttered closed tight, and Draco was able to cut himself off of every single emotion he felt. Dealing with this calmly and blankly was probably the best idea right now.

“Okay, Daph, there’s no need to be cruel-,” Theo started, but Draco shook his head.

“It’s fine, Theo. I’m sorry Daphne, that I didn’t notice before. I haven’t exactly had my head screwed on right in the last few years. And this potion business is barely a day old. I’m still trying to understand it myself, and these things have fallen in my lap, literally. I didn’t seek out Ginny or Luna, I didn’t seek out anyone. They came to me. And trust me, they wouldn’t have been my first pick either. But it happened, and I can’t take it back. Luna is right, I need to understand this in its entirety,” Draco said to Daphne as even toned as he could, hoping that they message he conveyed didn’t show preference for any woman involved. He wasn’t lying; he genuinely hadn’t approached anyone to help him, others had come to him.

Daphne looked at him for a moment longer, before nodding once. Draco responded by standing up, and stretching his arms over his head, letting his back crack. The library floor was unforgiving, and the angle at which he had laid on the couch was also not doing him any favours. “I’ll go talk to her,” Draco said, and Daphne gave him a small smile. He bid his farewells to Theo and Blaise, and headed for the hallway of dorms. He knew Pansy’s no problem, having been in there to many times to count. Whether it was to hang out, or study, or talk shit, or just enjoy each other’s silent presence, Draco would never have any problem finding where Pansy was. Hell, after this many years, he could probably pick her out of a line up blind, based solely on the familiarity of her perfume.

Draco knocked softly and heard the soft sounds of someone shuffling inside. The door cracked open slightly, and one of Pansy’s green eyes stared out at him.

“May I come in?” He asked, and Pansy opened the door further, looking as if she intended to insult Draco, but changed her mind. She opened the door fully then, gesturing for Draco to step inside. He did so, not even bothering to look around. It wouldn’t look any different than it normally did. 

Once inside, Pansy shut the door and folded her arms across her chest. “And what could I possibly help you with, Draco?” She asked haughtily, and Draco smiled softly to himself. So very Pansy, to always be on the offensive. 

“I just thought we might need to talk. You seemed upset, after you found everything out,” Draco said, and took a seat on the edge of her bed. Her comforter was the standard one given to all students, in their house colours, but Draco knew Pansy had smuggled in fancy silken sheets because she refused to lay in anything less than the very best.

Pansy scoffed at his insinuation. “What you do with your prick is none of my business, Draco, nor do I really care,” she said.

Draco sighed. “Pans… I know. I know how you feel about me,” he said softly, hoping not to spook her. Her eyes got wide, and her crossed arms fell, and she looked around the room to see if perhaps Theo and Blaise had snuck in to prank her. “It’s just me, Pansy. And I’m not here to yell, or get angry, or make fun of you”. Pansy seemed placated by that comment, and let her shoulders slump forward, defeated.

“Daphne told you, didn’t she? I told her to keep her mouth shut but… you know Daph. She’s a bigger gossip than I am,” she said with a laugh, and Draco smiled at the comment. It was true, Daphne was a notorious gossip, always commenting on things she probably should not comment on. It was always in the shadows, but if you told Daphne Greengrass something, you could guarantee you’d told the entire school.

“Well, if it makes you feel any better, she did it with only the best intentions. She was defending you”.

“Well, that’s nice, I guess”.

Draco reached his hands out, hoping Pansy would take them. She did, and he pulled her close, so she stood between his knees. She was barely taller than him now, despite him sitting. Once they were close, Draco didn’t let go of her hands as he began to speak. “Pansy, my goal wasn’t to make you upset. I didn’t realize you felt that way, honestly. I thought… well I thought that you weren’t interested in me at all since 5th year. And even then, it felt more… physical, than emotional. Yes, I’m a right git for not paying attention, but I promise that wasn’t my intention. I just didn’t think you felt, well, anything for me anymore. I haven’t been a good friend, a good person, in a long time. That doesn’t warrant caring feelings from anyone, so I haven’t been looking, honestly. Luna and Ginny,” Pansy noticeably flinched at this, but Draco continued, “they didn’t mean anything, on a romantic level. Yes, it was strange, and yes, it was sexual, but they weren’t doing it to strike up a relationship with me. And I’m not interested in pursuing that with them either. Even Luna said herself, we’re doing this to create a timeline. Not just for the hell of it,” Draco said, squeezing Pansy’s hands reassuringly.

“I just… I just didn’t want this to be your way of trying to show me you weren’t interested. Like, I know you’re not, but I didn’t want it waved in front of my face. Like, that fucking sucks,” Pansy whispered, not looking Draco in the eye. 

“No, that wasn’t at all my intention. And Pans, I’m serious about creating a genuine timeline on this. I need to know what my life is going to look like from now on, maybe forever. And frankly, I’m young and this is probably a relatively ideal time to be trying various sex acts with intent to time the calmed reactions of other witches,” Draco said with a small laugh, and Pansy giggled. Draco pulled her a little closer, resting their foreheads together. They had been through so much, and Pansy was the one friend who had been there from the very beginning of Hogwarts. Before Theo, before Blaise, before any others at all. Draco trusted her as much as he trusted Theo, and he knew that no matter what happened, she’d stand by him, fiercely loyal, almost to a fault.

“I have to wait and see how long what happened with Luna lasts. And, Pansy, I don’t want to say that anything is going to happen between us, romantically, at least right now. I don’t think I have the mental space for anyone, I have to figure out how to take care of myself first. But I wouldn’t shut the door on trying things out for this… guideline, or whatever we’re calling it. Seriously. I’d be honoured to roll around in the sheets with you again,” Pansy really laughed this time, tilting her head back. “If you feel it wouldn’t complicate things for you too much,” Draco whispered the last little bit, hoping that Pansy caught it. Pansy was gorgeous, in the way an ice sculpture was gorgeous. You wanted to look at it all the time, study every faucet of its beauty, watch how the light traveled over it at every time of day. But as soon as you got to close, you realized it was cold, and hard, and not very forgiving. Pansy was stunning from a distance, but up close, she was _deadly_. Draco had wanted that, once, the beginnings of his self-torture. But now that they were adults, Draco wasn’t certain he could handle the coldness Pansy offered. Draco needed, if anything at all, warmth and kindness.

He no longer was looking for an equal, but an opposite. 

“I… I think I would like that. And, promise, no strings attached. Just two friends doing what we do best; trying to fix the mistakes of our other friends. And being dirty motherfuckers,” Pansy said devilishly, and it was Draco’s turn to laugh. He did recall Pansy being a ridiculously kinky bed mate, her tastes being a cause for Draco’s own expanding palette. 

“Of course. As soon as witches start acting weird around me again, you’re going to be the first person I call. Promise. We can work through the list just like we used to,” Draco said with a wink. Pansy smiled at this, and wrapped her arms around Draco’s neck, pulling him in for a hug. He squeezed her tight, relishing in the comfort of being held by a friend. It was… nice.

“Thank you,” she said honestly, pulling away to look at him again. “For everything. You’ve always had such a level head, despite what others think. I see the real you, Draco, and he is good and kind and smart and better than he gives himself credit for. And he… he shouldn’t be defined by his past. No matter what anyone else says. I stand by that,” Pansy said softly, resting her forehead against hers again. He closed his eyes and breathed in the familiarity of her perfume, the feel of her hair curtaining around them, her hands holding his shoulders. He gripped her hips harder, thankful for a grounding moment in the sheer chaos that had become his life as of late.

“Thank you, Pans,” he whispered, not letting her go just yet. She seemed content to stay there, as well.

“I wish I could kiss you. Even just in a friendship way,” she uttered, and Draco smiled despite himself. Most of the girls out there in the hallways were interested in him on a purely physical level, no interest in knowing him, not really.

“Soon, I promise. Well, actually, I can’t promise that. I have no idea how long this is going to hold off for, before all hell breaks loose,” Draco said to her, and she laughed, finally leaning away to let Draco off the bed.

“Maybe she’ll have cured you”.

Draco snorted, rolling his eyes. “Unlikely. I don’t think it works like that. Pretty sure the book never mentioned ‘let a casual acquaintance ride your face and this will all go away’,” Draco said, and immediately slapped a hand over his mouth, eyes going wide. Pansy stopped him before he reached the door.

“She… she sat on your face? In the library?” She stopped, and Draco waited to be berated. But Pansy burst into hysterical laughter. “Oh my Merlin, Draco, that’s a wild one, even for you! With Luna, no less! Oh, just wait until the others hear about this!” She cried, bolting for the door. Draco sprinted after her, almost stumbling down the stone stairs.

“Guys!” Pansy shouted as soon as she reached the common room. Blaise, Theo and Daphne had resumed playing cards, and it appeared that Daphne was kicking their asses. They lifted their heads at Pansy’s abrupt intrusion. “You would not believe what Draco let Luna do in the fucking library,” she giggled as she said it, doubled over to catch her breath. Draco barrelled in after her, stopping when he saw her laughing and gasping for air.

“You seem to have worked out your problems,” Theo said, smiling softly. Draco slung an arm around Pansy.

“We always do,” he said, giving her a wink. She smiled at him, before jumping over the back of the couch. 

“Now, listen to this. Draco is a little freak!”. 

Even Draco couldn’t help but laugh along with the others.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey babies! how are you? I have a question for ya; who do you think is the endgame pairing? there is one, don't worry, but I'd love to hear your theories. xx


	7. Treat Ya Better

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 𝑻𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕 𝒀𝒂 𝑩𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓 - 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑪𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒔  
> "He said she opens up when she's drunk  
> And I ain't talking feelings  
> Called me everything but a punk  
> She said there's no more time for healing"

The effects caused by the soiree with Luna lasted a lot longer than expected.

It had been days, and no one was acting even remotely strange. Kind, but not trying to corner Draco into a quick fuck in an alcove on the way to class. It was rather blessed, if Draco could say for himself.

The few people who were aware of the situation were on top of things, but not overbearing. Luna would often dine at the Slytherin table, which at first, shocked the masses, but she fit in surprisingly well. The other Slytherins couldn’t ruffle her feathers, and she took all their comments in stride with a smile and a well thought out response, so eventually they stopped trying. Pansy had seemed stiff and cold to her initially, but eventually, she came around to see Luna was actually quite bright and had many ideas that Pansy seemed to enjoy corroborating. The two got along incredibly well, and it warmed Draco’s cold, dead heart.

Luna, Pansy and Daphne made sure to inform Draco of any possible increase in his attractiveness, or if the scent of cherries and honey seemed to be creeping up again, but it seemed that nothing was changing. Even still, Ginny often walked with Draco to classes, given their almost identical schedules since they were both Quidditch stars and rather brilliant. She glared at girls that looked at Draco too long, and even though it was almost overbearing to think he need a bodyguard after all this, it was also quite comical.

Ginny really was terrifying. 

Luna had, fortunately, made a parchment enchanted to only be read by the few involved, but, unfortunately, she wasn’t kidding about being thorough in her observations. The damn paper had been meticulously designed to automatically record any and all sexual adventures Draco engaged in (which required an incredibly odd spell that Luna had needed his blood and one of his socks for), so that times, actions and incorporating results could easily be tracked. They need only fill in the date at which the effects wore off. Luna _was_ in Ravenclaw for a reason, she was damn brilliant, but holy fuck, did Draco ever curse the day she gained the knowledge to create such a thing. She handed it to him at lunch one day, gave everyone a little wave and hello, before skipping off to the Ravenclaw table. Draco had cracked it open, seeing the words formulate on the page before a blush bloomed on his cheeks. He wasn’t often deterred by foul words, but to see them so clinical in front of him, where his friends were going to read… it honestly made him uncomfortable.

Theo snatched it out of his hands before he could protest, and read the notes jotted at the top. His eyes continued to widen as he read, and his mouth could barely contain the absolute grin on his face.

Blaise was next, and of course, being Blaise, he felt the need to read the damn thing aloud.

“’October 14, 10:48 am, Hogwarts Library, Restricted Section: kissing with tongue, fingering to orgasm, cunnilingus to orgasm (position: queening)’… damn, Draco, you really know how to treat a lady,” Blaise laughed, and Draco snatched the paper from his hands. He rolled his eyes and stuffed it into his bag.

“This does not need to be an inquiry into my sex life. No one is reading that unless absolutely necessary. Holy fuck, this is not how I wanted to spend my breakfast today, thank you,” Draco huffed, gathering up his things to leave his friends giggling behind him.

So far, 5 days had passed, and things were looking okay. Draco had somehow managed to narrowly avoid Hermione for all of them, since she was quite literally one of the last people Draco wanted knowing about this anymore than she already did. Draco knew he was being difficult by not including her, but after everything they had been through and how he had treated her for years prior, it felt silly to let her see into him being weak. She’d be so angry he made her act like she did at the party, see it as a betrayal to everything she had worked towards; autonomy. She’d probably spit on his shoes and any trace of the wobbly friendship they had built would crumble. Because if Draco had to admit, this _was_ a weakness. If his parents could see him now, they’d be shocked and dismayed at what had happened to him. His father would probably attempt to disfigure him so girls wouldn’t be interested, and his mother would probably hide away in her rooms for hours on end, as she always did when things turned sour. 

Draco shook his head, clearing the thoughts. His parents weren’t here, and they couldn’t torture him for the mistakes of his friends any longer. There was no point in dwelling on what wasn’t. 

However, it was on the 6th day, that Draco realized his luck had run out.

He was climbing down the stone stairwell from his room when he saw Daphne reading one of her sappy romance novels before the fire. It was early, and breakfast would only just be beginning, so there were very few students actually up already.

“Morning, Daph,” Draco said nonchalantly, running a hand through his hair. He plopped down on the chair across from her and crossed his legs, leaning back. As much as he was really not her biggest fan, she was still his friend.

“Good morning Drac-… oh,” she said dumbly, staring at him intensely, the book forgotten in her lap. Draco turned to look at her, noticing her fumbling of words. She was looking at him all wide eyed, her expression not shifting from sheer awe struck. He cleared his throat.

“You alright, Daphne?” He asked lamely, unsure of what was wrong with her.

“This isn’t good,” she mumbled, but she didn’t move, didn’t avert her eyes.

“What isn’t good?” Draco inquired, also not moving. His hands twitched where they rested on the arms of the chair.

“You look… really good today, Draco,” Daphne squeaked out, rolling her hands in her lap, before attempting to wipe the clamminess off them. He quirked a brow upwards.

“Uh… thank you?”.

“And you smell amazing. Cherries and honey kind of amazing,” she spoke softly, finally diverting her eyes to the ground. Realization swung into Draco like a wrecking ball, and he sat up straighter.

“Oh. Fuck,” he whispered, turning to look at the fire. He had no idea what to do now. After all their planning, one would figure Draco would be prepared for this, but unfortunately, Draco was at a bit of a loss. This meant he either needed to hide away, or fuck someone, and make that decision quickly. Obviously, the options were plentiful, but he felt that nagging feeling that he was taking advantage of these girls slither back up his spine. If this was to be his life now, guilt was going to eat him alive. The last week had been so peaceful, Draco had almost been able to forget that he was harbouring a horrible new curse.

“I’m… I’m going to go get Pansy. Because… yes? Pansy?” Daphne asked, a small blush on her cheeks. Draco stared at her dumbstruck. Yes, he and Pansy had shared that conversation with her in her bedroom, but they hadn’t discussed it since. What was he supposed to do, knock on her door and ask her if she wanted to shag? Just like that, having not touched each other in years, so casual in his request? It felt so terribly improper and cruel.

A dark cloud spun itself into Draco’s mind. _You could kill yourself. That would save everyone a whole lot of trouble._

Draco hadn’t thrown up a mental wall of Occlumency so fast in his life, and it almost made him dizzy. He couldn’t think like that. It would be his downfall, because one day, that little voice was going to start figuring out a way around his mental blockade.

And Draco would start listening.

So instead, he nodded once at Daphne, not looking her in the eye, and she was gone in a blur. A sexual encounter with Daphne was likely to be just as awkward as one with Ginny or Luna. She had always harboured some sort of mixture of feelings for Draco, which he had never felt reciprocated, and he often found her quite dull. It hadn’t ruined the friend group, and it was more of a passing tease to joke about at this point, but they had never talked about it seriously. Draco felt it wasn’t necessary, because, as much time as they spent together, Daphne never pushed anything on him. She never pressured, never even asked. She just held those feelings inside herself, and held onto the friendship she did have with Draco. Daphne wasn’t super high on the list of people Draco was interested in being locked in a room with, but she wasn’t awful. She was just… Daphne.

After Daphne left, Draco stared blankly into the fire crackling before him. Winter was upon them, and the stone walls of the castle could only hold out so much of the cold. It suited Draco just fine. The Manor always had a subtle chill to it, although he wasn’t sure if that was due to the actual temperature, or the ominous feeling that something terrible was going to happen at any moment.

In Malfoy Manor, it was hard to tell. 

He knew he should arrange a plan to visit home, to see if he could gain some knowledge on this new curse in the library. He wasn’t incredibly inclined to visit home and his mother, to see the miserable recluse she had become all alone in the home, but he knew it was a necessary evil. The Malfoy line was notorious for having nasty curses bestowed upon them, so the library was likely to have something on breaking them as well. This might be a new one though, given that Malfoy’s were usually dealt curses to harm or kill, not make ridiculously attractive.

As Draco fell deeper into his thoughts, he almost didn’t notice the approach of some footsteps. He turned his head, and met the pretty green eyes of Pansy.

“Oh,” she said softly once they were close to one another. She wasn’t dressed, wrapped in an emerald green silk robe, her feet and calves covered by sheer black stockings. She had clearly been in the process of doing her hair, soft curls framing her neck and a small bun on top of her head. Draco felt bad that Daphne had clearly rushed her out of her room, probably insisting it was an emergency (it was not) and that she needed to go immediately (she did not).

“Hi, Pans,” Draco said, realizing how lame that sounded given what Daphne had called Pansy down to do. Her eyes were still trained on him, wide as the dinner plates in the Great Hall, and she scanned him from head to toe. Draco cleared his throat, and stood from his chair. “I don’t know if Daphne told you what-,” he began, but she cut him off.

“She didn’t, but it’s not necessary. I can… see why she got me. Can I just take a quick bath? I wasn’t exactly… prepared,” she said rather shyly, and Draco nodded quickly. 

“Of course, whatever you need, there really isn’t a rush,” Draco spoke quickly, hoping that Pansy didn’t feel pressured in any way. This wasn’t her job, this wasn’t a requirement, and if she didn’t want to do this, Draco was by no means going to force her. He had other options, and he was pretty sure that hiding in the Manor for the rest of his life was also an option.

So Draco was a bit shocked when Pansy nodded once, and reached out her hand, and pulled Draco along behind her to the upper years bathroom. It was large, unnecessarily so for how few upper year students remained. Once they were in the bathroom, Pansy turned to look at him, hands placed on her hip. "Are you sure you want to do this?" She asked. Draco couldn’t help but laugh, tilting his head back as he did it.

“Am I not supposed to be asking you that?” Draco replied, and she smiled softly.

“I definitely want to do this. Potion or no potion. You, however, are a different story. I wouldn’t be your… first choice, and that’s okay, I just want to make sure you don’t feel coerced,”. Pansy stopped him in front of the wall by near a corner of the massive central bath. He sat and watched her fill the tub, the smell of juniper and roses hitting his nose. It was soothing, with a hint of spice, and it smelled exactly like Pansy. She always smelt the same, after years and years, so much so that Draco knew he’d never be able to associate that juniper tree and rose garden scent with anything or anyone else.

Pansy turned around as she undressed, but it didn’t shock Draco much one way or the other. Between all the sex and drunken shenanigans their friend group had gotten up to, they’d all seen each other stark naked at least twice. Usually more. 

But Draco wouldn’t deny Pansy’s beauty. Her skin was pristine, little moles dotting her skin like constellations. Her long black hair, now tied into a bun so as not to get wet, was glossy and smooth, and always seemed to fall perfectly. Draco was sure there was a charm or two in there, but he didn’t care. It always looked and felt luxurious. Her makeup was subtle, never anything too intense, just enough to enhance her already cold glare. Many were afraid of Pansy, and they were right to feel that way. She could be really intense, and cruel in her ways, but she was fiercely loyal, almost to a fault, so Draco had always admired her intensity as more of an asset than a detriment. Pansy was slim, smaller than Daphne, less athletic than Ginny, taller than Luna, but she still had some curve to her. She had ridiculously large breasts for how tiny she was, but it wasn’t something Draco had every complained about.

He had thanked Merlin every day when she and him were together.

Once she was submerged under the bubbles, Draco cleared his brain of any thoughts of Pansy’s body. _Not until she initiates it, you wanker._ She bobbed around a bit before turning the water off and floating in his direction. She smiled warmly, and he returned the look.

“I’m really sorry this has happened to you,” she spoke softly once she was close to him. He looked down at her, and nodded once. The bathroom was hot, so Draco shrugged off the blazer he was wearing and rolled up the sleeves of his white shirt. Kicking his shoes and socks off, he rolled his pant legs and swung his feet into the bath. It was hot, but it soothed away any aches that Draco had lingering. Theo was adamant about doing muggle workouts between practices alongside regular Quidditch exercises, and it was brutal on Draco’s calves.

“It is what it is. I have faith in us, in you guys, and me, to figure out a fix for this. This is a pretty smart group, and we’ve faced bigger demons. This is nothing now,” he replied, shrugging his shoulders and swinging his legs. She tilted her head to study him, but didn’t say anything for a minute. Finally, she swam around to the middle of his legs, and he eased them apart so she could float in between. Pansy rested her hands on his thighs, and the warm water soaked through his pant legs. Draco didn’t mind, though. He knew he wouldn’t be going anywhere soon, until the potions effects were satiated.

“But still. You’re allowed to be upset about it, if you are. This is a confusing scenario, and frustrating, I’d imagine. Having no control over the outcome, the in between, your own body. It probably feels a bit like a betrayal, if we’re being honest. I’m just… I’m just sorry. I know I didn’t have anything to do with it, but I’m still sorry,”. Pansy closed her eyes and tilted her head to the left, and an echoing crack resonated through the bathroom. Draco was spooked by the noise, and his eyes widened.

“Merlin, Pans, what the hell was that?” Draco asked in a flurry. She shrugged once, opening her eyes again.

“Nothing. Just a sore neck is all. I feel like I’ve been on edge for…,” she held up her hand and counted her fingers, “18 years”. Draco had to laugh at her joke, and he lifted his hand to demonstrate a turning motion.

“Turn around, let me,” he said, and she obliged. He dipped his hands into the sweet smelling oils on the top of the water, and lifted them to Pansy’s shoulders. He began with small circles on the sides of her neck, and she moaned out loud, before sitting up straighter and slapping a hand over her mouth. Draco smirked, and couldn’t help the remark that slipped out. “You can make noise, Pansy, you know I like that,”. Pansy shook her head with a small giggle, but she remained relatively quiet for a while, save for the occasional sigh or whimper. Draco could feel the tension knots under her skin, but as he worked into them, he felt the loosening begin, and soon, her shoulders were dropping, and her neck didn’t seem so tight. But he watched as her hands balled into fists the longer he worked, and he felt concerned.

“Pansy, are you alright? I’m not hurting you, am I?” He asked, and she quickly shook her head.

“No,” she squeaked out, but Draco wasn’t convinced.

“Your hands…” he prompted, and she immediately loosened the fists, before sighing.

“It’s just… this is very nice, trust me, I feel loads better… but I…. I’m struggling to just… to keep my hands to myself,” she trailed off at the end, her words almost lost in the empty room. But Draco heard her. And he knew why. He moved his hands down from her neck to her shoulders, and spun her around. He leaned in closer to her, and he could see the flush in her chest, and Draco was fully aware it was not from the hot water.

“You can do whatever you want, love,” he spoke to her tenderly, brushing a stray black curl from her face. Her breath hitched, and she slowly reached up to grab the collars of Draco’s white button up. Water soaked in and dripped down his front, but he didn’t mind. His mind was onto matters other than the status of his clothes. 

As Pansy’s hands drifted farther up, she cupped his cheeks and lifted her body up out of the water and onto the step. Her knees were still submerged, but she was taller than Draco like this, and he wanted her to have control initially, so he knew this was what she wanted. 

Once that had been established, however, Draco would most definitely be taking the reins. 

“I’m sorry this is happening to you… but I’m also very much not upset about it,” Pansy whispered, before moving downwards and pressing her lips to his. She wasn’t gentle, she never was, but Draco loved it all the same. He felt the ridiculous drive to be aggressive in bed as much as Pansy, and while he was capable of doing both, this was certainly a preference. 

Draco carded his hands up into her hair, pulling out the clip she used to keep it tied up, and felt comfort in the way it fell over his hands. This was familiar, and Draco knew immediately that he trusted her completely, and she him.

Pansy pulled Draco closer, wrapping her arms around his neck, her breasts pressed against him. He slipped his tongue into her mouth, and the two fought for dominance. Pansy rescinded, accepting defeat, moaning carelessly into Draco’s mouth as his hands dropped from her hair to her waist. He gripped her even closer, the last bits of his clothes that weren’t already wet now soaked, and let his hands trail gently over the backs of Pansy’s thighs. She shivered, her knees buckling a bit, but Draco caught her and pulled her into his lap, only breaking their kiss for a moment. He was literally shaking with the overwhelming desire to slip his hands down between them and touch her exactly how he knew she liked, but she clearly had other plans.

Slipping back off his lap, Pansy reached down and undid the buckle on his belt, the button and zipper next. She made quick work pulling him out of his boxers and into her hand, and Draco’s own breath hitched slightly. She worked him slowly, and stared into his eyes the entire time. She looked ethereal, naked and dripping wet, biting her lip as she worked to get him hard. It didn’t take long, and soon she was smiling. Draco had leaned back on his hands, watching her, taking the time to commit this to memory. She was a vision, she always had been, and this exact moment was no exception. Draco was hungry for her, and she him, evidently.

“Pansy… I’m sure you’ve been told it’s not nice to tease,” Draco hummed, running his hand over her jaw. She bit her lip as she eyed him through her lashes. Tantalizing. Draco knew his pupils would be blown to the point of hiding the grey, and his brain could barely think of anything outside of this moment. 

Pansy smiled once more, more sticking her tongue out to merely lick the head, Draco’s eyes rolling into the back of his head at the sight. Continuing to edge him around true pleasure, Pansy teased and taunted, knowing it would work Draco into a frenzy. It always did.

And after the 5th lick, Draco felt a growl rumble in the back of his throat. An actual growl. He gripped Pansy’s black hair, fisting it to force her eyes upward to him. He knew it probably hurt, but Pansy looked to be in ecstasy. 

“I said, it’s not nice to tease. But clearly you don’t know your manners, so let me show you. How does that sound?” Draco said sternly, looking directly into her eyes. She nodded in his grip, and he clucked his tongue.

“Use your words, Pans,” he whispered, a breath from her face now, and he could hear the faintest whimper escaper from her.

“Yes please, sir,” she whispered back, never taking her eyes off of him. He grunted in approval, and turned the fist of her hair downwards, forcing her mouth over his cock. He pushed all the way into the back of her throat, listening to the muffled gags, but didn’t let her up for air until the last second. She breathed in deeply, tears forming at the corners of her eyes. But Draco knew she loved this. She knew their safe word, never afraid to use it if they had ever done something she didn’t like. But she wanted pain, loss of control. She craved it, just as Draco so desperately wanted to be _in_ control. They worked so well together.

It was unfortunate Draco had no romantic inclinations towards Pansy.

Draco forced Pansy’s head to bob over him, letting her little gags and moans wash through him and make him see stars behind his eyes. After a bit longer, he realized if he kept this up, he wouldn’t last, and Luna had been adamant that Draco do something different each time. So he pulled Pansy’s head up, spit and tears leaking down her face, and he delicately wiped it away.

“I think you’ve learned your lesson, hm? And you did so good too. Perhaps a reward now?” Draco inquired like a professor would speak to a student, and Pansy nodded eagerly, like a little puppy excited to please her master. “Good girl”. 

Draco pulled Pansy up off her knees, standing himself in the water to be able to pull his trousers down a bit further. Once sitting again, he pulled Pansy closer, directing her to straddle his lap. She did so, gripping the collar of Draco’s soaking shirt fiercely.

“Please, Draco,” she said faintly, feeling him brush between her legs, eliciting a whimper.

“Shh, love. I’m going to make you feel so good,” he whispered, lining himself up before pushing into her. She squeaked, jumping a tad bit, before relaxing and sinking back down. Draco groaned and tilted his head back. Pansy fit him like a puzzle piece. Perhaps it was cause they’d been fooling around for so long, but it was as though they were two halves of a whole, coming together. Pansy leaned away to rest her arms over Draco’s shoulders, able to see into his eyes. He caught her hips in a bruising grip, and began to bounce her body over his. The pleasure was immense, and they were both panting after only a few minutes.

Draco didn’t need to step away from himself to know the picture they painted was beautiful. Sunlight was pouring through the black lake into the windows of the bathroom, painting them both in an angelic glow. Pansy looked radiant, as always, but the way the sun hit her porcelain skin and contrasted against her black hair had Draco thinking that perhaps Pansy had been a siren in another life. Or maybe Veela ran through her veins, as much as it did his own.

He knew the sun hit him in much of the same way, pale skin and white hair glowing luminescent. Pansy was well aware too, running her hands through his hair and over his exposed neck and staring with unbridled lust. They were so consumed in each other that an army could saunter in right now and they would likely not even look over. 

Draco felt the telltale sounds of Pansy’s orgasm approaching, her fluttering around him something he had felt many a time before. He knew he himself was also close, the two of the groaning and whispering under their breath to another getting louder.

“Draco, I think…” she began but cut herself on a particularly deep thrust.

“I know Pans, I know. Me too,” he whispered to her, looking her directly in the eye and shifting a hand up to tangle in her curls. They pressed their foreheads together, and Pansy let her eyes drift close, and merely soak up the sensations. The pleasure coiled itself through every muscle in Draco’s body, and lust was the only thing traveling through his veins at this point.  
“Together?” She asked softly, opening her eyes once more to look at him. He nodded once, a small smile flitting over his face.

“Together,” he replied, and she closed her eyes again, letting small moans and whispers of his name escape her lips. It was heaven, and Draco felt himself close in on his own orgasm at the same moment Pansy began to crack in his arms.

“Always,” he spoke so softly against her lips, so quiet he knew she could barely hear it above the sounds their own bodies were making. But it had the intended effect.

Pansy shuddered, and began shaking in his hands, her body barely able to hold itself upright. Draco groaned himself, before his eyes whited out and he couldn’t see or hear or feel anything but insane pleasure radiating off of them both. The comedown was shaky, Draco barely able to hold Pansy upright in his arms, before decidedly giving up and letting them both sink into the still warm water, Pansy clinging tightly to Draco’s chest and breathing heavily. Little tremors lit her body up every now and then, but she seemed otherwise content. Draco held her close, sitting in the tub so they were covered up to Pansy’s neck and his chest. His arms rubbed little circles over her back, and she drew funny shapes over his biceps as she rested against him.

“Draco?” She asked, not lifting her head. Draco hummed, encouraging her to continue. “That was… that was really good,” she said timidly, and Draco laughed. It wasn’t like Pansy to be timid in any regard, but she tended to let her horrific bitch persona drop when around him. 

“Yeah… it was actually. I know I don’t feel for you the way you want me to, but I… I missed you Pans. Our friendship. I love you, I always will. And I trust you, and hope that you feel the same way,” he spoke to her, still rubbing circles over her back. He felt her smile against his chest, knowing that she understood him completely.

“Of course. And I missed you too. I promise I won’t shut you out anymore if you promise to do the same. Let us help you, Draco. I know you’re… fucking going through it right now, but we love you, you’re our family. And we’re not going to abandon you. Just… let us be there. Even just as someone to get fucked up with,” Pansy said, tilting her head to look in his eyes as she spoke. Draco nodded once, and Pansy accepted this as answer enough. She knew he wasn’t going to give her some heartfelt speech back, but a nod was enough to know he had heard her, and understood.

After a bit more time cuddled up under the bubbles, Draco suggested they get out, since the water was cooling and Pansy was beginning to prune up. She nodded once, and squealed a bit when Draco lifted her onto the tile by her hips. She smiled as he pulled her towel off the rack, transfiguring it into a fluffy robe instead. Once she was all wrapped up, he pulled her in close for a hug, running his hands up and down her arms to try and heat her up.

“Thank you,” he mumbled into her hair, and she nodded once, giving him a tight squeeze. With a final kiss to her head, the two of them sauntered out of the bathroom, realizing just how much time had passed.

The emerged to find Blaise chilling with his feet perched on a table, tucked into a velvet armchair. He looked up with a raised eyebrow, and Draco returned the look.  
“Good morning, lovebirds,” Blaise drawled, and Pansy crossed her arms over her chest.

“What do you need Blaise? Shouldn’t you be in the Great Hall or…” she eyed the clock above the fireplace, “your first class?”.

“Hm… perhaps,” Blaise said nonchalantly, before tossing his feet off of the table and standing to stretch, a piece of parchment clung loosely in his hand. He took a step forward, and gestured to the paper. “Did you know this thing updates live? Incredible work she’s done here, our Luna,” he said with a hint of malice. Pansy snatched the parchment out of his hand and gawked.

“Blaise! You little freak!” She called after him, chasing him with her fists raised. He screamed, before leaping over the chair and running away, laughter flying over his shoulders as Pansy pursued him around the common room. Draco grabbed the paper from the floor, eyeing the top as he realized what it was.

There, right underneath the last entry, was a nice little itemized list of the things he and Pansy had just done.

Draco groaned, rolling his eyes. He wasn’t going to make it out of this alive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, before anyone yells at me about the length of time this took... I did just get diagnosed with some pretty shitty medical stuff, for which I have been doing weekly treatments that incapacitate me to the point of being pathetic lol. So I am so sorry this took so long! I am feeling better and have found a new rhythm to work around with these medical things, so I should be able to be better about the next one. Please don't hate me! All my love to you. xx


	8. Blondes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 𝑩𝒍𝒐𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒔 - 𝑷𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒉  
> Call your boyfriend  
> Tell him he's fine  
> He's just no longer your type  
> You've got someone else on your mind

The days rolled by slowly, and not without crippling anxiety to accompany them.

Draco and Pansy’s tryst had been very effective, weeks having now passed without incident, but Draco still walked around like the Dark Lord himself was going to pop out from behind some corner, demanding that he swear fealty. The Mark on his arm itched, and he subconsciously found himself scratching it to the point of bleeding sometimes. It was a bit gruesome, but it provided some relief since the sessions he had once a month to try and remove were doing nothing more than torturing him. They weren’t any closer to actually getting the damn thing off, and Draco figured it was more experimental now than having any real desire to take it off. He wasn’t going to say anything though; if firing Acid Hexes into his arm would make the masses feel better, then perhaps he should just let them. 

And so, he did.

Draco was sitting in a Herbology lesson, but he wasn’t paying a sliver of attention. His brain was completely elsewhere, which wasn’t shocking to anyone anymore. Draco was rarely physically present, and even more rarely mentally present.

Currently, Draco was working very hard to avoid the intense glare he was receiving from one Hermione Granger. She was shooting daggers from across the room, and Draco could feel it was burning the side of his neck. If looks could kill, Draco Malfoy would be in the grave. 

It wasn’t that Draco was still avoiding her particularly, he just found that he was avoiding everyone these days. There was a constant nagging feeling that things were going to get worse, tenfold, although Draco didn’t really have any reasoning behind this. The Christmas holidays were right around the corner, meaning exams and the pressure to decide whether he would be going home or not was weighing quite heavily on Draco’s shoulders. He spent most of his time tucked away into an alcove of the library, a Notice-Me-Not spell cast over the entranceway. He hasn’t seen Blaise in days, and only Ginny because they share the same classes. Luna was a bit like a ghost, drifting in every now and then but always seeming to be missing. Pansy and Daphne were around, but they preferred the gossipy company of each other over Draco’s brooding misery. Besides, Draco knew Pansy wasn’t interested in crowding over him and making him feel like what they had done together was something else. She knew his stance on them, and he had to respect her for keeping things completely civil since. It was admirable, but of course, Pansy didn’t like to look weak, so this was all very calculated. 

Draco’s mind drifted back to the present and he still felt Hermione’s eyes on him. He knew he’d have to make an absolute full tilt run out of the classroom if he hoped to be able to avoid her entirely. She was a menace when she wanted to be, and the hourglass of sand dictating how long Draco could hide from her was running very low.

“And that will be all for today, please ensure you read all the way up to chapter seventeen for your examination and do try to take care of yourself this holiday season. Happy Christmas!” The professor cried out, and Draco snapped immediately into panic mode. He quickly shuffled all of his things into his bag, and made a beeline for the door, trying to avoid a confrontation with Hermione.

But alas, luck was not on his side.

“ _Petrificus Totalus!_ ” A voice cried out in the hallway, and Draco had a split second to realize that he was really in for it now. The curse hit him like a ton of bricks, and every muscle in his body froze up, his bag hitting the floor with a thud. Students around him gasped, ducking out of the way, but there wasn’t much point. When Hermione Granger aimed, she aimed to kill.

Or in this case, full body bind.

“You little… we aren’t playing this game anymore!” She cried, her footsteps clacking loudly on the stone floors.

“Miss Granger, I will not condone-,”

“I know professor, but this is important,” Hermione uttered, and the professor huffed and scuttled into her classroom once more. Of course Draco was on his own. What professor was going to go against war heroine, golden girl, brightest witch of her age Hermione Granger to help ex Death Eater, moderate recluse and past purist Draco Malfoy. “Draco Lucius Malfoy, we are going to talk, and we are going to do it now. I do not care what obligations you have before dinner, you have been avoiding me since Pansy’s party and I am right sick of it. Now, come along,” Hermione said, and with a quick swish of her wand and an uttered _Finite_ , Draco felt blood rush back into his limbs, and he could breathe again. Ignoring the stares of the other students, particularly that of one smirking Ginny Weasley, Draco followed Hermione down the hall and away from the peering eyes.

After some time, Hermione trusting that he was following and not once looking back at him, they rounded to the library, somewhere that Draco knew like the back of his hand, but was sure that Hermione wasn’t going to risk yelling in. This did little to ease his nerves, and he knew that he was desperate for the time when Hermione was easily avoidable and not looking to hex him in the hallways.

After wandering farther to the back, Hermione slipped into an alcove that was relatively hidden, and waved him inside. He wandered in silently, not wanting to be the first to speak. Sitting down, Draco placed his bag beside him and kept his eyes on the woodgrain table, like a scolded child. Hermione cast a quick _Silencio_ , and sat down herself. 

She stared at him, studying him, for what felt like an entire century. Draco hadn’t felt this uncomfortable in a long time, this situation perhaps trumping the initial reading of Luna’s Sex Parchment (Theo’s naming, not his). After Draco was sure his skin was shrivelling under her gaze, she finally spoke.

“I know why you’re avoiding me,” she said softly, her tone not really conveying anger, merely curiosity. Draco risked a glance up at her, and saw that she was leaning casually in her chair. He tried to ease up as well, hoping not to look as nervous as he felt.

“Oh?” He inquired casually.

“Yes. I know about the potion Blaise gave you,” she guessed correctly, and Draco groaned, dropping his forehead onto the table.

“Yes, it seems every bloody person knows now,” he mumbled, and she scoffed.

“Unlikely. Did you really think Ginny, one of my best friends, wasn’t going to tell me what was going on? I certainly did my own research regarding why I acted the way I did at the party,” it was now Hermione’s turn to look embarrassed, though Draco didn’t really think she did anything that required that sort of reaction. A bit of mild, unintentional flirting was hardly anything to look twice at.

“I don’t know, I figured she’d be pretty upset about it and not want anyone to know,” Draco said softly, now watching her from where hid chin rested on the wood. She gave him a pitying look, and Draco felt immediately very gross. He didn’t like to be looked at like that. 

“No, she wasn’t upset about it. Sure, a bit shocked, and yeah, maybe a bit embarrassed by what she described as rather obvious wanton behaviour, but not upset. It was out of your hands Draco, this isn’t something you can control. And everyone understands that. Don’t… don’t put so much of this on your shoulders Draco. Really,” she said calmly, and Draco nodded once in affirmation, sitting back up to lean into the arm of the chair.

“I appreciate the sentiment, Granger, but it seems unlikely that offering condolences is the reason you rather aggressively demanded I follow you to the library,” Draco said, arms crossed and eyeing her warily. She nodded once, pulling some books out of her bag and laying out a pile of parchment covered in scribbles.

“I’ve been doing some reading,” Draco rolled his eyes at the predictability, but waved her on to continue, “and I think I’ve narrowed down some options. Not that you’ve been any help whatsoever, I’ll add. I could have used with some real observations, not Ginny and Luna’s second hand knowledge,” Hermione huffed, looking up at him through her thick lashes. He raised an eyebrow at her.

“Real observations? You want to come and watch me fuck your friends? Can’t imagine that will be comfortable for anyone, but in the name of science,” he said, and she groaned, her neck flushing red.

“No, you dim-wit, I don’t need to watch you… sleep with my friends. But at least hearing what you experience firsthand would be useless. Merlin, your brain is in the gutter,” she whispered the last bit, laying all the work out before herself. Draco smiled at her nervousness, but quickly squashed that feeling.

“Well, I’m sorry. It wasn’t something I was trying to include many people in. Especially people who do not like me at all. We’re here now, though, so lay it on me; what do you have?” He asked, and Hermione blinked back her surprise at Draco Malfoy apologizing. It was unlike him, but nevertheless, she cleared her throat and continued. 

“So I tracked down the book you had found in the library, as Luna had mentioned seeing the title before you had… interacted, so I read through all of the same things you did, and then cross referenced with some of the other books in the library and I think… I think I might have found a way to destroy the potion without compromising your own DNA,” she said the last bit quietly, lifting her head to see his reaction. Draco’s eyes were wide, shock and disbelief warring in his mind.

“Are… are you sure?” He asked cautiously.

“Yes. I feel really good about this. And I’ve deduced that if things don’t work, well, it won’t harm anyone involved. There aren’t any adverse side effects”. Draco was floored. He knew Hermione was smart but this… this is incredible. She would have had to go through hours of work to accomplish this, and Draco wasn’t even sure to begin thanking her.

“Granger, this is amazing. There’s… there’s no way I could possibly repay you for this,” Draco said, looking at the paperwork before him rather than in her eyes. He might not be able to hide the emotion swirling in his own if he did.

“There’s no need to repay me, Draco. This was a welcome challenge. And in exchange, you’re not going to avoid me anymore. You’re going to help me from her on out. Starting with a book I need. _Italian Ritualistic Sacrifices_. It’s by a man named Alessandro Adone. I can’t find it here or any other bookshop, and I was hoping perhaps Malfoy Manor might have it in their collection. Or even Blaise’s family, I know they’re Italian”.

“Of course, anything you need. And I promise I won’t leave you out of this anymore. I need your help, and this is incredible. Thank you again, Granger. If you need anything from me, I’m more than willing to help,” Draco said honestly, a small bubble of joy bursting inside him. This was real, genuine progress. He was going to finally be able to rid himself of this.

“Good, you can start right now. I need to brew a potion for this, and it takes approximately two months. If I get started on it tonight, you’ll only have to endure one month of being at school like this after Christmas break. Which I’m sure you can handle. So I need to head to Hogsmeade for some supplies. You can come with me,” she said, closing up her books and putting them back in her bag. Draco eyed them carefully, wondering what sort of spell this was that required a potion and a book on ritualistic sacrifices.

“Sure,” he passed as he stood up, shouldering his bag. “The sacrifice isn’t going to be my soul or like both my legs, is it?” He inquired, and Hermione threw her head back and laughed, the sound warming Draco’s heart. _Stop that, you idiot. You are a project, a charity, to her. Nothing more._

“No, nothing like that. It’s nothing important, and no one is leaving with any less than two legs, I swear”.

The two made their way out of the library, vowing to meet at the front doors after returning their things to the dorms. Draco quickly scuttled away to the Slytherin dungeons, walking briskly, feeling much better than he had in the last few months, perhaps even years. On the way back up, bundled in a black coat and scarf, he spotted Hermione coming down the Gryffindor tower, wrapped in a soft purple coat and a big white hat. Her hands were encased in fluffy white gloves, and she smiled at Draco when she spotted him approaching. Draco’s heart began beating faster than he was sure was humanly possible, and the swell of feelings he experienced seeing her float down the stairs towards him was hard to suppress. He couldn’t even stop the smile that ghosted across his face, her joy evident.

“Ready to go?” She asked, and he nodded once, offering her is arm. She looked down at it, then back to his eyes, before smiling and grabbing hold. It wasn’t like this was an official inquiry to love. It was considerate, escorting a witch like so.

 _Keep telling yourself that,_ his brain so rudely interrupted. He frowned, but kept walking onwards. Hermione chattered on about school and what she’d been up to lately, rambling on about some strange runic discovery she’d made and was hoping to be able to explore further. Draco listened closely, enjoying her endless stream of knowledge. She could talk forever, if given the chance, and Draco was more than willing to listen silently.

As they made their way downwards into Hogsmeade, Draco couldn’t help but admire the way the village had rebuilt itself after the fall of the Dark Lord. It almost seemed normal, like dark magic hadn’t tainted its beautiful stone structures and centuries old glass.

Hogsmeade seemed to want to forget the war as much as Draco did.

“Ah, right here! I just need to grab a few things,” Hermione said, ducking under the stone archway into the little potions shop. 

“Good afternoon Granger, Malfoy,” the old shopkeeper waved at them, and Hermione waved back, Draco giving a small nod in his direction. The man who ran the shop had never treated Malfoy any different despite his past, which was why Draco liked him so much. He didn’t really seem to care one way or the other. 

While Hermione wandered off to collect her things, Draco approached the till. “She’s going to insist on paying. Please don’t let her. Leave it under my account. She’s brewing something for me, so I’d like for it to not come out of her own pocket,” Draco spoke softly, and the shopkeeper gave him a wink and a nod. Draco smiled back, turning in Hermione’s direction. “Granger, I’ll wait for you outside. Take your time,” he called out, and she mumbled in affirmation, letting Draco escape the small shop. The crisp winter air felt nice on his lungs. Draco felt the fog in his brain lifting, the quiet calming him. He didn’t often get outside, so this was a much needed break.

“Draco!” A very shrill voice impeded on his meditation, and he cracked one eye open to see Daphne skipping towards him in her cherry read outerwear. She looked impeccable, as usual. Not a blonde hair out of place, even with the cold weather closing in around them.

“Daphne,” he said coolly as she approached, a small smile on her face.

“What are you doing here?” She asked, stuffing her little hands into her cloak.

“Hermione. She’s got something she’s brewing for me, so I said I’d accompany her here to pick up supplies,” he offered, nodding towards the shop door. Daphne raised an eyebrow.

“Did you finally tell her?” She questioned, giving him a knowing look. Draco sighed.

“I didn’t really have to. She figured it out by herself, through others. She… cornered me, and made me talk to her,”. Draco omitted the part where she hexed him into submission, and left it at that. Daphne nodded once.

“She’s smarter than everyone combined. I’m not surprised she got it”.

“Well, here we are. Everyone knows now. How lucky for me,” Draco grumbled, pushing a few hairs that had fallen off his forehead. Daphne smiled, despite how grumpy Draco seemed.

“It’s fine. Only the people that matter know,” she said softly, and Draco nodded once. He felt a sneeze coming on, and turned away from Daphne for a moment. When he turned back, her smile had fallen and she stared at him wide eyed.

“What? It was just a sneeze,” Draco said, looking at her with a frown. When did it become a crime to sneeze?

“No, Draco, that… you just… I have no idea how…,” Daphne stuttered, and Draco snapped his fingers once.

“Come on Daphne, just spit it out,” he snarked, wondering why she was acting so weird. Just then, the bell above the door swung open and Hermione walked out.

“My goodness, I love that little shop! But Draco, you really didn't need to insist on paying, I'm a capable witch, you know. Oh, hey Daphne, how are you?” Hermione asked, bouncing over to the two of them. Daphne sputtered again, turning to look at Hermione, then back to Draco. He was right thoroughly confused, and Hermione’s eyebrows scrunched up. “What are you… oh,” Hermione said when she turned to look at Draco. He was more lost than ever, taking in the two completely mad girls before him.

“Will someone tell me what’s going on?” Draco asked, wiping at his face in case there was something on it.

“It’s back,” Hermione said softly, a rosy pink flush gracing her cheeks.

“What’s back… oh,” Draco clued in, taking in the heavy breathing and wandering eyes both of them were giving Draco. “How in the hell? All I did was sneeze!”

“I don’t think it matters. If time is up, then time is up, that’s just it. Perhaps the sneeze just shook it out of your muscles. We don’t…. we don’t really know how this works, Draco. How long has it been since you…,” Hermione asked, waving her hand. Draco raised a brow.

“Fucked?” He said, and Daphne actually whimpered a bit, clamping a hand over her mouth. Draco raised a brow at her, but she quickly averted her eyes.

“Yes, that. How long?”

“Um,” Draco thought quickly in his head. “5 weeks,” he said with fair confidence. Hermione nodded once, gulping before looking down at her hands.

“Well, I haven’t seen you in a while so I guess it’s been pretty well kept under wraps since I saw you last, but, um, we need to do something about it, like, now, because, well, it’s pretty strong and-,” Hermione was cut off by a whispering Daphne.

“It’s worse,” she barely squeaked out, and Draco had to strain to hear.

“I’m sorry?” He questioned, facing her more fully now. She brought her hands down from her mouth and cleared her throat.

“It’s stronger now, than before, when I got Pansy. This is… yeah, this is a bit overwhelming. I would really like to…,” she trailed off, reaching a hand out to touch Draco’s lapel, before stopping herself and turning around. “We need to deal with this now. It’s really bad. Like, really, really bad,” Daphne huffed, still facing the other way. Draco threw his arms in the air.

“Jeez, thanks Daph. Let me just bend you over right here in the snow and take you rough from behind, yeah?” Draco practically growled at her, and Daphne moaned. Literally moaned. Draco looked at the back of her head in shock, not realizing the effect his words had.

“Shut up, Draco. That’s not fair,” she whispered, still not turning around. Hermione was still flushed, fanning her faced, avoiding eye contact. 

“Fuck, it’s warm out, isn’t it?” It was not. “That’s… not a bad idea, Draco”. He turned his attention fully on her now, urging her to continue. “Maybe not quite… like that, but if we could do something quick just to hold us off a little longer, maybe even until Winter break…,” Hermione tried to suggest, and Daphne finally turned around. Draco barked out a laugh.

“Please don’t tell me you’re volunteering yourself to-,”

“I’ll do it”. Both of them turned to look at Daphne, wide eyed.

“Daphne, no one is being coerced into this-,” but she cut him off just as she did Hermione.

“You’re not coercing me, I’m volunteering. And right now, I’d do anything you asked. You’re one of my closest friends, this is not something we were prepared for, but we’re making the most of it now, yes?” She said sternly, trying to push her shoulders down so as not to appear intimidated. Draco looked at her warily, as he knew that the girls weren’t entirely in control of themselves when this hit. “Besides, even though I don’t want to do that to Pansy, ever, I have wanted this for… longer than I will admit. She’ll understand, we all do,” Daphne finished. Draco sighed, rubbing at his eyes.

“Works for me,” Hermione said, straightening her coat. “Follow me,” she said, leading the other two down a back alley and around a few bends. Draco was starting to wonder if she was leading them to their death when she finally stopped in front of a door that had no visible markings.

“Okay, in here. Do what you need to do. I’ll stand guard. Cast a _Muffliato_ , please… for the love of Merlin,” Hermione said, blushing. She kept her eyes downcast, avoiding looking at either of them. 

Draco could not believe the situation he found himself in. This was insane. He was in an abandoned building in Hogsmeade about to shag a girl while another stood outside to guard from intruders. Un-fucking-believable.

Once inside, Draco cast a warming charm to hopefully keep them from freezing together, and turned to look at Daphne, who was looking a little more ruffled than when they first saw each other. 

“Look, Daph, we really don’t-,” she cut him off before he could finish, holding up a hand.

“Stop, Draco. We’re doing this. We’re getting you straightened out, and we are indulging in my fantasies of being with you. That’s the end of it. Now, come here,” Daphne demanded rather intensely, but Draco obliged. He walked over to her, pulling her into his arms. She pressed close to him, both for warmth and the attraction.

“Tell me whenever you want me to stop,” he whispered against her lips, before kissing her tenderly. Draco may not feel much for Daphne, but she was pretty, and his friend, and he wasn’t going to make this awful for her. Daphne deserved better than that, and if this helped her get through whatever feelings she had for him, then so be it.

Their kiss was heated, mouths moving in a perfectly proper manner. This didn’t surprise Draco. He was well aware of how Daphne was raised to be a pureblood bargaining chip, and thus was taught to be complacent to whatever the man holding her wanted. It was cruel, and unfortunate, but Draco knew it all too well. Of course she would have to do whatever her parents wanted, them setting up any eligible match for her. His parents had once deigned to do the same, but with his father in prison and his mother living as a recluse in the massive manor, he doubted Draco’s future bride was a strong point of debate for them right now.

Moving his hands from her lower back to her shoulders, Draco pushed Daphne’s fine coat off her shoulders and onto the floor, although he doubted that she really cared at the moment. She grappled at his collars, so he pulled his own coat off and slung it over a table. He backed Daphne up, finally being able to press her body against the wall. He bit her lower lip, and she whimpered, rather wantonly. 

Her hand slid down his chest to the front of his pants, and she gingerly wrapped her small fingers around a rather quickly growing erection. Draco groaned when she gripped a little tighter, and this only fuelled her drive.

“I want to…to, um…,” she began, her lips still ghosting over his. Her eyes were pressed shut, and Draco couldn’t stop the small smirk that crossed his face.

“Want to what, Daph? You need only ask. Whatever you desire,” he said softly, and she sighed when he kissed her gently once more.

“I think I want to go down… on you… like, well…”. Trailing off again, Draco’s smirk changed into a real smile at her nervousness.

“You don’t have to be scared, Daphne. It’s okay to say it, especially if we’re going to do it. If that’s what you want, I am in no place to ever want to say no to that,” he replied, and she smiled too, opening her eyes finally.

“Okay,” she barely whispered, her face leaning in to kiss him once more, continuing to touch him gently through his trousers. Draco kissed her back with unbridled lust, wrapping his hands around the back of her neck and into her hair. 

After a few more moments of kissing, Daphne stepped back and lowered herself to her knees. Draco, although not in love with Daphne, was very in love with the sight. She really was beautiful, and she looked so innocent and eager that Draco felt himself twitch, running a hand down the side of her face. She leaned into his touch, and he smiled.

“I’ve never done this before so, I want you to teach me,” she uttered as barely more than a breath, and Draco took pause.

“Daphne…,” he began, but she shook her head, turning to kiss the palm of his hand. 

“Please, Draco,” she breathed, hands now undoing the button and zipper on his pants. Draco could barely contain himself at the sight of it, so he nodded once, encouraging her onwards. Once she was through, she pulled him and gripped the soft flesh firmly, but still a bit timidly.

Draco was going to need to have excellent control if he was going to teach her and not just go absolutely mad. He needed to be calm and go slow, and not pull out any rough tricks that usually came with giving Draco head.

“Good girl. Go slow, whatever you need. A little tighter… ah, that’s it,” Draco moaned, titling his head back with his eyes closed. She pumped him a bit more, eyes wide and never leaving his face.

After some time, Daphne clearly felt she wanted to up her game. She leaned forward and licked once gently over the head of Draco’s cock. He jerked, one hand coming to grip the wall behind her and the other brushing an errant hair away from her face. She did it again, and Draco almost lost it. There was something about being Daphne’s first that made this all the more erotic, even considering the circumstances.

“Like that?” She asked in wonder, soaking up his reaction and letting it feed her own lust.

“Yes, love, just like that. May I?” He asked her, and she nodded, fully prepared to take on whatever he offered to her. Draco moved his hand down her faced to her jaw, and pushed a little to force it open. He wasn’t being rough by any means, but Daphne appreciated him leading her some way. 

“Stick your tongue out… there you go, good girl. Push me away if it becomes too much. Breathe through your nose… I’m going to be as gentle as possible,” he said to her, guiding himself into her mouth. Daphne never once took her eyes off of Draco, gauging every reaction and taking everything he gave her. She did exactly as he said, breathing through her nose and keeping her tongue flat on the underside of his cock. She let him fuck into her mouth, her hands braced on his thighs, still clothed in his black trousers. It felt a naughtier somehow, whenever clothing stayed on during sexual acts. Like they were doing something forbidden, which at the moment, they really were.

“Daphne,” Draco whispered, a moan slipping out afterwards. Her cheeks were red, and she swelled with pride. She could do this, she could do this, she could do this… “I want you to touch yourself, Daph. I want this to feel good for you too,” Draco groaned, slowly running his thumb over her cheek. She immediately stiffened, feeling a bit nervous, but Draco smiled at her, a real smile, and her heart melted a bit. She let one hand drift down between her legs, up her black skirt. Knickers pushed aside, she touched herself as she would normally, letting Draco control the pace as she sucked him off. She closed her eyes and hummed when her own fingers worked her up to a frenzy, and Draco hissed at the new sensation. She liked that. She liked to see him happy. She could do this, she could do this, she could do this…

“Love, I want you to come with me,” he said in a husky, raw voice. She gave a little nod, and Draco could tell by the little twitch in her legs that she was definitely going to do just that.

A few more thrusts, and Draco knew he was done for. “Okay baby, just like that. Come with me…,” he trailed off, and Daphne gave herself a few more touches before spiralling into oblivion. Her moan on his cock sent Draco over the edge too, and he came with a stuttered groan and fingernails dragging down the brick wall. Little stars danced behind his eyes, and he felt a bit lightheaded. With this he sunk down to his knees, turning to press his back to the wall and sit down. That was… good. For someone who had never done that before, Daphne was surprisingly receptive.

He pulled her close, wrapping her in his arms and letting her head rest on his chest. He wasn’t going to just pack up and head out after that, Draco knew for a first time she deserved at least a few minutes. Hermione would understand. Not too much time had passed. Daphne sighed, content. “Thank you,” she whispered, and Draco placed a tender kiss on her mussed hair.

“I think I’m the one that’s supposed to be saying that,” he said softly, and she laughed a bit.

“I wasn’t too bad? It was okay?” She questioned, more frantic about it than he thought any woman should be. Even bad head was still pretty good, in Draco’s opinion.

“Of course, Daph. You did excellent. A quick learner. You’ll make some guy really fucking happy one day. That, combined with your excellent taste in clothes,” Draco said, pulling her jacket over from where it laid on the ground, and wrapping her in it. She laughed, before the giggles slowly shifted into quiet sobs. Draco panicked, immediately pulling back to grip her face in both hands and look into her eyes. “Daphne, what’s wrong?”.

She hiccuped once, before trying to calm herself. “Draco… if I tell you something, can you promise to keep it a secret?” She asked, eyeing him with a doe-like gaze. Draco knew all too well about secrets, and he nodded, tucking a blonde hair behind her ear. She took a deep breath in. “I’ve always been attracted to you, and I don’t know if it’s the combination of you being strikingly handsome, or just always being my friend, or that weirdly mysterious aura that surrounds you-,” Draco snorted a bit at this, but gestured for her to continue, “but you’re the only man I’ve ever been attracted to. And that’s not because I’m in love with you, it’s because… it’s because I’m gay,” she whispered at the end, and Draco’s jaw hit the floor.

“I’m sorry, come again?” He said, not quite believing what his own ears heard.

“I said, I’m gay. Or I think I am. It wasn’t until two years ago that I actually felt that was true. But at that point, everyone assumed I was in love with you and my parents were preparing me for a marriage contract and I knew I could never be with… who I wanted to be with. So I just went with it,” she said, more tears leaking from her eyes.

“Oh, Daph… why did you do this? You could have told me and we could have avoided this entirely. You didn’t need to torture yourself with being intimate with me,” Draco said worryingly. He didn’t care one way or the other if Daphne was gay, he himself still warring with his own preferences, but he didn’t want her to feel coerced in any way. 

“No, no, I wasn’t torturing myself! I really do find you attractive, Draco. And I wanted to know if… if I could do it. If I could get through it and be happy and feel like I convinced the man I was with that I was straight. Because I’m going to have to fake it one day, for the rest of my life. There’s no other way around it. I’m going to have to pretend. And I think I did a pretty damn good job. And it… wasn’t really that bad. I kind of enjoyed it. But maybe that’s because it’s you, and you’ve always been the contradiction to my otherwise very lesbian thoughts,” she giggled, and looked down at her hands. Draco laughed too, feeling flattered in a very strange way. Then he clued in on what she said, and his heart dropped.

“Daphne, you shouldn’t have to pretend your whole life…,” he trailed off, but she just shook her head.

“I don’t have a choice,” she cried a bit more, tears still falling down her rosy cheeks. Draco felt consumed by guilt, but then an idea slammed into him.

“What about me? What if you were betrothed to me?” He asked, and she whipped her head up.

“What?”

“I’m serious, Daph. I’m going to be paired with someone I don’t want too, because while it isn’t a top priority for them now, my parents aren’t going to let me get away with just any girl. If we… if we got married, we could be with whoever we wanted. It would simply be of convenience. I wouldn’t… I wouldn’t make you stay faithful to me. And if you do have some sort of attraction to me, then we could certainly get past any sort of fake physical affection necessary. You could find a girl you really loved, and so could I, and we could cover for one another. At least for a while. So you’re not trapped somewhere that makes you miserable and lose who you are,” Draco suggested, knowing this idea was in the realm of one of his wildest. This was certainly going to be risky, but he suddenly felt this overwhelming need to help her.

“Draco… I wouldn’t put you through that…,” she said, but he shook his head.

“Like I said, we’d be helping each other. We could both be seeing who we wanted to see. I’m serious, Daph. I want to be happy, and I want you to be happy too. We may not be super close, but you’re still one of my best friends, and I’ve known you forever. And in the eyes of our families, this is probably a pretty ideal match,” he said with a shrug, and she laughed.

“It’s risky but… it’s not a terrible idea,” she said, pushing some hair that had fallen into Draco’s eyes off his face. He nodded once, and gave her a kiss on the forehead.

“Think on it. You don’t need to answer me now. Let’s get dressed, poor Hermione is probably freezing,” Draco said, and lifted Daphne onto her feet, a giggle escaping from her. They bundled themselves back up, and headed out the wooden door.

Hermione was leaning against the opposite wall, eyes wide.

“Sorry, Hermione. Thank you for watching out for us. He should be… fine now,” Daphne said, and gave Draco’s hand a squeeze before walking off, leaving Draco and Hermione alone.

“S’not a problem,” Hermione mumbled, eyes not leaving Draco’s. Once Daphne was gone, she spoke once more. “That’s… that’s really kind, what you offered for her,” she said, pushing up off the wall. 

“Pardon?” He asked, raising an eyebrow.

“The marriage thing. That was… really brave. Anyone would be lucky to have a friend like you,” she explained, still not looking away from him. Draco’s eyebrows shot up in surprise.

“How did you-,”

“You didn’t cast that _Muffliato_ ,” she finished, before nodding once, and heading in the direction of the castle, leaving Draco in the snow, cold and alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DID YOU REALLY THINK WE'D GET THROUGH THIS STORY WITHOUT AT LEAST ONE GAY?   
> So here it is, chapter 8! Over halfway done now! I always intended for this to be a 10 chapter smut fest, but it's looking a bit more like 14 now. Woohoo!  
> But fret not, there are still 4 more dirty chapters in here... I still have a few tricks up my sleeve that I haven't shared.  
> All my love to you guys, xx.


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